rights of way

What would Thomas Hardy have thought about motorbikes in his back yard? Speeding motorbikes in Dorset have a history of literary victims – witness the sad end of TE Lawrence (of Arabia). On a more contemporary note this is a real issue for rural authorities and there is no easy way of resolving the social divisions it creates. This story tells us:

A full-throttle legal challenge over motorcyclists’ rights to ride along Dorset’s rural tracks reaches the UK’s highest court on Thursday – via a detour though digitally-enhanced maps.

The test case, which could affect scores of other applications to redesignate paths and bridleways across England and Wales, will be heard by the supreme court on 15 January.

The Ramblers’ Association, environmental groups and landowners are monitoring the case closely for fear that it opens up a rush of similar claims for motorbikes to roam across the countryside.

The supreme court hearing relates to five ancient lanes near Beaminster, Tarrant Gunville and Puddletown – tranquil tracts of the county far inland from busy tourist beaches.

Requests for powered vehicles to be allowed to drive along the pathways were submitted in 2004 by the Trail Riders Fellowship (TRF), whose motto is “conserving green lanes for the enjoyment of everyone”.

In 2010, Dorset county council refused to accept them on the grounds that the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 specifically required applications to be accompanied by a map “drawn to a scale of not less than 1:25,000”.