Bridleway - change of use

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 Tim Davies 19 Apr 2020

I’m trying to find out the “history” of a local bridleway. Specifically, was it ever just a footpath and when did it become a bridleway. More out of curiosity than anything else. It’s in Wales if that makes a difference. 
 

any ideas where to look?

 DD72 19 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

Your County Council or whoever the transport authority is should have a rights of way officer. They will probably have some information on their website but I'm not sure how much would be digitised and directly available to the public. However, you ought to be able to request the information and they would be obliged to give it to you. The ones I've met are pretty helpful although right now it might be a problem if it is only available in a paper format.

 Billhook 19 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

 If its inside a national park your national park are responsible for fp's and bridleways.  Ask for their footpath officer.

Outside the park, much like  DD72 says.  Its a legal responsibility of local authorities to keep a 'Definitive list' of All footpaths, bridleways, byways and highways.  The highways department may keep that list where you live, or put you in touch with the person/department responsible for footpaths/.bridleways if this is someone else.

 Sam Beaton 20 Apr 2020
In reply to Billhook:

Depends on the NP. In the Peak District, Derbyshire, Staffs, Sheffield, Oldham, Cheshire and Kirklees are still the highway authorities. Not sure what the situation is in the Welsh NPs

Post edited at 08:58
 Bulls Crack 20 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

When the path was recorded on the Definitive Map and Statement for the area there may have been evidence of what its status and usage was...but not necessarily  that much.  Even though it's an existing rights of way researching its past will be similar to the recommended  approaches for discovering 'lost' ways/adding routes to the Definitive  Map. This book is excellent (but unavailable) but there a few things on their  website http://www.restoringtherecord.org.uk/ 

 Sam Beaton 20 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

Further to Bulls Crack's post, if it was originally put on the definitive map as a FP but it is now a BW your local highway authority (council) will be able to tell you how why and when it became a BW

 Billhook 20 Apr 2020
In reply to Sam Beaton:

Thanks Sam.  In our park - The North York Moors NP the 'park is responsible for all footpath / bridleway maintenance.  You may well be right for all parks.  I'm not sure whether our park actually holds 'the definitive map'.   

Either way I'll amend my advice to the OP - check with highways!!±!  They'll soon tell you if they don't keep the definitive map of fp's and bridleways!

OP Tim Davies 21 Apr 2020
In reply to Billhook:

thanks everyone. It’s just there’s a bridle way near by, and in the current situation some are saying “it should go back to being a footpath”. I don’t think it ever was, in fact I think it may even have been a BOAT. 
 

 Sam Beaton 21 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

There are several legal procedures your local authority could follow to try to follow to have this BW reclassified as a FP. But rest assured they are all complicated and long winded and open to consultation and your local authority is very unlikely to have the time to do any of these any time soon 😁

 Dave Williams 21 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

There may be excellent clues on the ground as to whether a RoW has been correctly classified as a bridleway or a footpath, eg. is it wide enough for a pony and cart, or is it too narrow for a packhorse to pass another....etc.?

As others have said, the county's definitive map should be the first (and possibly also the last port of call). However, there are some facts related to the history behind the information on a DM that need to be considered.

Definitive Maps were created as part of a system establishing public rights of way, set up under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 and developed through subsequent legislation. These maps are statutory documents which are intended to show the classification and alignment of the complete consolidated network of public rights of way in each local authority area at a given Relevant Date. Preparation of a written Definitive Statement to accompany the map was also a requirement under the legislation, providing descriptions of every right of way shown on the map.

Local authorities were required, under the 1949 Act, to prepare, review, fully update and publish Definitive Maps at regular intervals (intended to be no longer than five years). Preparation was supposed to have involved considerable research effort and consultation with landowners, district, borough, town and parish councils, user groups and the general public.

In many local authorities, this simply didn't happen to the required extent and the government eventually set a deadline (late 1950s) for full compliance with the Act. Some LAs, when faced with a monumental task in a short space of time, delegated the task of surveying to the town and parish councils. Some of these councils did a great job, some did it reasonably well and some did a poor job or just didn't do it at all. 

This has led to many anomalies now seen on OS maps as, since 1960, these have been based on the DMs. Eg. RoWs changing status at county, town or parish boundaries, from a FP to a BW or vice versa, or RoW disappearing altogether at a boundary as the neighbouring council didn't complete their survey in time. 

As an example, I have a RoW running along a green lane past my house. Wide enough for a car, it was clearly once an unsurfaced track used by horse and cart. It is shown as a public FP on the DM. On a site visit, the LAs RoW officer opinioned that it had clearly been wrongly classified by the parish council in the 1950s and should have been classed as a BW.

Half a mile from my house, the FP ends abruptly at the parish boundary, even though it's continuation can be clearly seen on the ground. The only conclusion, agreed with the Row officer is that it wasn't surveyed by the neighbouring parish and consequently isn't shown on the (so called) DM. 

 Billhook 22 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

I'm only talking about our national park.  

BOATS Byways Open to All Traffic in our NP  are the responsibility of the Highways department.  Many of these BOATS  are totally overgrown and/or are in appalling states.  None are signposted.  Upon writing to the Highways i was told in reply that they set no budget aside for BOATS, or as the manager referred to them Unclassified highways and are under no obligation to maintain them or sign post them.

Off Roaders In our NP cause some real problems where the status of the 'highway' isn't clear.  I know that in some cases they've been able to issue a prohibition notice to prevent vehicles from using tracks like yours which now either footpaths or bridleways.

 Sam Beaton 22 Apr 2020
In reply to Billhook:

BOATS are not the same as unclassified highways.

The former are proper PROWs with all the protection afforded to them as other PROWS and are shown by a green dash type symbol with extra squiggles on 1:25,000 OS maps. They look a bit like BWs on the map unless you look very closely with your reading specs!

The latter are shown by green dots on 1:25,000 OS maps and are indeed a nightmare as both the rights the public has on them and the maintenance obligations authorities have for them are unclear. These are in the slow process of being correctly reclassified one by one as PROWs and there are fewer of them around than they used to be

 phizz4 22 Apr 2020
In reply to Tim Davies:

This web site might help you to trace it's history.

https://maps.nls.uk/

You can view all historic maps of the whole of the Uk starting from the late 19th Century. You should be able to see if it was once a footpath.

 Billhook 22 Apr 2020
In reply to Sam Beaton:

I think I should have checked a map!   I am/was  refering to, "Other  Routes with public access', and these were the subject to my contacting the highways department, after our NP told me they have no budget or legal responsibility for them.   

Either way I hope we both agree that there are a number of unclassified roads, marked the  1:25,000 maps  as green dots, which are neither signposted and in many cases cannot be followed on the ground - one near me is marked as crossing a river - but thats impossible as its steep banks!!, another one appears to pass over a bridge, but the bridge was installed by a farmer who has a big sign infront of it stating it is a private bridge (I assume he built it)   These 'highways' are in some kind of limbo land!

 Sam Beaton 22 Apr 2020
In reply to Billhook:

Yes, they do tend to get ignored by highway authorities unfortunately. They are not on the definitive map so PROW officers don't get the budgets needed to manage them, and they are bottom of the pile for highways officers as they are generally inaccessible for ordinary cars

 Bulls Crack 30 Apr 2020
In reply to Billhook:

BOATs are required like other PROW, to be maintained and signposted (from a road), but that maintenance may be pragmatic ie for majority use


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