joe careless
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Derbyshire county council destroying another ancient byway
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highlandsflyer
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Unbelievable.
Unbelievable.
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That seems to imply from the comments its a horse rider group wanting the changes? I know a few of our routes have been resurfaced for horse riders but it's now become a speed run for mountain bikes and is a thin strip to ride along. Not so bad for us as horse hooves damaged the surface and the chalk surface is now nice and hard.
The other sections have been smoothers and flattened so large machinery can get in to put wind turbines up..
There is never any consultation that I know of, still it's the land owners that'll own the routes around here not the council.
That seems to imply from the comments its a horse rider group wanting the changes? I know a few of our routes have been resurfaced for horse riders but it's now become a speed run for mountain bikes and is a thin strip to ride along. Not so bad for us as horse hooves damaged the surface and the chalk surface is now nice and hard.
The other sections have been smoothers and flattened so large machinery can get in to put wind turbines up..
There is never any consultation that I know of, still it's the land owners that'll own the routes around here not the council.
joe careless
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By implementing maintainence D.C.C. are clearly indicating their legal responsibility to maintain this byway regardless of ownership. The real issue is how they're going about it, materials in doing so and lack of consultative framework in order to ensure that key sector industries (tourism/agriculture) are not adversely effected. I have to agree "horsey" groups maybe in the back story. Here in Pembs. they are irresponsible in consideration of other byway users especially in wet conditions.
By implementing maintainence D.C.C. are clearly indicating their legal responsibility to maintain this byway regardless of ownership. The real issue is how they're going about it, materials in doing so and lack of consultative framework in order to ensure that key sector industries (tourism/agriculture) are not adversely effected. I have to agree "horsey" groups maybe in the back story. Here in Pembs. they are irresponsible in consideration of other byway users especially in wet conditions.
joe careless
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The Peak N.P. ceo is getting involved http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/outdoor-ne ... 13498.html
highlandsflyer
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Is it not possible to combine the threads on this issue? When it is something this important it would help to keep as many informed as possible.
Yes please feel free to move my other thread....
I just started another one before I saw this where I wrote
Cy from Cotic just sent out this mail.....
"We found out over the weekend that Derbyshire County Council are up to their old ways again, this time ruining the classic Sunken Road byway on Rushup Edge. Mountain bikers are appalled at this and it seems to be the straw breaking the camels back. Certainly everyone here is furious about it.
I've written all about over on the Cotic News Page including the letter I sent to the councillor responsible and links to other areas of DCC which you can complain to. If you love the Peak District then please get involved. The local MTB groups have tried and failed to engage with the rights of way team, as have the Peak Park guys. It's time to let the elected officials and the media know that this is unacceptable and must be stopped.
We're passionate about protecting our trails, especially classics like Sunken Road which pretty much look after themselves. Please help, please click through to the Cotic website and get the details and make yourself heard.
Thanks,
Cy
www.cotic.co.uk"
If you want to take part in the revolt... here are the details.
More info here:http://www.cotic.co.uk/news/
I just started another one before I saw this where I wrote
Cy from Cotic just sent out this mail.....
"We found out over the weekend that Derbyshire County Council are up to their old ways again, this time ruining the classic Sunken Road byway on Rushup Edge. Mountain bikers are appalled at this and it seems to be the straw breaking the camels back. Certainly everyone here is furious about it.
I've written all about over on the Cotic News Page including the letter I sent to the councillor responsible and links to other areas of DCC which you can complain to. If you love the Peak District then please get involved. The local MTB groups have tried and failed to engage with the rights of way team, as have the Peak Park guys. It's time to let the elected officials and the media know that this is unacceptable and must be stopped.
We're passionate about protecting our trails, especially classics like Sunken Road which pretty much look after themselves. Please help, please click through to the Cotic website and get the details and make yourself heard.
Thanks,
Cy
www.cotic.co.uk"
If you want to take part in the revolt... here are the details.
More info here:http://www.cotic.co.uk/news/
ride and rode these very regular, the "maintainance" is shit, i can see the desire to possibly make some sections a tad less dangerous but what they laid.....i mean carlessly dumped is shocking! poorly graded, nowt knitting it together and after whittnessing a rider slip on monday in dryish conditions will be very dangerous when it rains, cant beleieve how this has been passed by LA and been paid for. poor poor and very upsetting 
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I've been following this closely on the Peak District MTB Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PeakDistrictMTB/
DCC have now been responsible for the 'improvement' of several trails in the Peak District over the past couple of years. They seem to have very deep pockets to pay for it all too. Almost half a million pounds have been spent on various trails, including a projected £30k on the Chapel Gate/Rushup Edge section currently undergoing works.
(For reference this is the downhill section we used just before the cafe stop on the Retrobike Peak District ride in September)
The DCC approach seems to be fairly straight forward.
Claim to have undergone consultation with a full range of user groups, then carry out wholly unsympathetic work using inappropriate materials and techniques. The claimed rational is one of improving accessibility, but is actually more likely based on limiting the chance of litigation should someone be injured on an 'unmaintained' public right of way.
The current works seem to be using limestone substrate in a gritstone area. Based on previous work it wouldn't be at all surprising if the final top dressing consisted of tarmac road planings.
A number of mountain bikers have been in touch with the rights of way officers at DCC, so far all have received the same brief generic response, which ignores specific requests for information and instead makes generalisations such as 'Mountain bikers prefer challenging, rockier routes, whereas these might not be suitable for horse riders or walkers.'
The DCC methodology leaves trails flattened out leaving a homogeneous loose surface which is horrible to walk on, bad for horses and dangerous for biking. Everybody loses out. Imagine a forest fire road with loose chippings and you get the idea. Sort of understandable in a 'manufactured' forest plantation, but wrong on so many levels for an ancient sunken byway in a National Park.
Trail maintenance can be done very successfully as proved by the very nearby Roych Clough track, which was very sensitively repaired as part of it's upgrade to Pennine Bridleway status. The trail building contractor worked closely in consultation with multiple user groups, and relied on help from volunteers to help with the actual work. This approach meant that the repair work was not only visually sympathetic, durable and completed to a high specification, but it also met the needs of all the user groups involved. ie. safe for walkers and horses, fun lines and obstacles for mountain biking which also helped to regulate speed thus reducing potential trail user conflict.
The DCC approach is poor by comparison. Filling in holes which mismatched materials, then top dressing in equally unsuitable material. If a landowner were to do the same to an ancient track, then I'm pretty sure that the Peak National Park Authority wouldn't even let it passed the planning application.
It appears that DCC are immune from this and instead allowed to pay for such vandalism using vast sums of tax payers money.
Frankly the whole thing stinks.
I've been following this closely on the Peak District MTB Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PeakDistrictMTB/
DCC have now been responsible for the 'improvement' of several trails in the Peak District over the past couple of years. They seem to have very deep pockets to pay for it all too. Almost half a million pounds have been spent on various trails, including a projected £30k on the Chapel Gate/Rushup Edge section currently undergoing works.
(For reference this is the downhill section we used just before the cafe stop on the Retrobike Peak District ride in September)
The DCC approach seems to be fairly straight forward.
Claim to have undergone consultation with a full range of user groups, then carry out wholly unsympathetic work using inappropriate materials and techniques. The claimed rational is one of improving accessibility, but is actually more likely based on limiting the chance of litigation should someone be injured on an 'unmaintained' public right of way.
The current works seem to be using limestone substrate in a gritstone area. Based on previous work it wouldn't be at all surprising if the final top dressing consisted of tarmac road planings.
A number of mountain bikers have been in touch with the rights of way officers at DCC, so far all have received the same brief generic response, which ignores specific requests for information and instead makes generalisations such as 'Mountain bikers prefer challenging, rockier routes, whereas these might not be suitable for horse riders or walkers.'
The DCC methodology leaves trails flattened out leaving a homogeneous loose surface which is horrible to walk on, bad for horses and dangerous for biking. Everybody loses out. Imagine a forest fire road with loose chippings and you get the idea. Sort of understandable in a 'manufactured' forest plantation, but wrong on so many levels for an ancient sunken byway in a National Park.
Trail maintenance can be done very successfully as proved by the very nearby Roych Clough track, which was very sensitively repaired as part of it's upgrade to Pennine Bridleway status. The trail building contractor worked closely in consultation with multiple user groups, and relied on help from volunteers to help with the actual work. This approach meant that the repair work was not only visually sympathetic, durable and completed to a high specification, but it also met the needs of all the user groups involved. ie. safe for walkers and horses, fun lines and obstacles for mountain biking which also helped to regulate speed thus reducing potential trail user conflict.
The DCC approach is poor by comparison. Filling in holes which mismatched materials, then top dressing in equally unsuitable material. If a landowner were to do the same to an ancient track, then I'm pretty sure that the Peak National Park Authority wouldn't even let it passed the planning application.
It appears that DCC are immune from this and instead allowed to pay for such vandalism using vast sums of tax payers money.
Frankly the whole thing stinks.
joe careless
Senior Retro Guru
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