Landscapes review consultation - have a look

[Bob]

Hi All,

I dunno if this is the right place, or if someone else has flagged this up before, but we all need to be aware of it and complete it to help the TRF if possible.

The following text is copied from another forum I’m on:

The Govenment has a questionnaire out which is seeking support to ban
trail riding in England. Some people think it will also lead to closures
of minor roads in National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty
where there are concerns about too much traffic. Since 2020 National
Park rangers have reported increased visitor numbers and an increase in
anti-social and hostile behaviour. Natural England has tried to educate
people, but providing visitors with clearer information has not been
sufficient to fully address these issues. So the proposals given in
question 13 are what is suggested to try and deal with anti-social
behaviour, one of which will have the effect of banning trail riding for
recreation. This is not only grossly unfair but is also doomed to
failure. The anti-social element of society will ignore the ban, and
the Police will be very ineffectual in catching them.

There is an anomaly that the Gov report states that access should be for
everybody without discrimation, but then has questions which are angled
towards supporting a ban on recreational use of motor vehicles on
unsealed roads. All motorcyclists need to respond, not just trail
riders, as it is likely that there will be lots of support for a ban.

Please complete the online questionnaire
https://consult.defra.gov.uk/future-lan ... ion/intro/
or email landscapesconsultation@defra.gov.uk before 8th April. We only
have a month!

If you wish to find out more about this, I have attached the guidance
created by the Trail Riders Fellowship and National Motorcycle Council.

The first page asks you to read the Government Response to the
Landscapes Review but that will take you away from the questionnaire, so
you may prefer not to. You will need to fill in your name, email,
location, and tick “member of general public” for question 5. If you
wish, you can ignore questions 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. You may wish
to ignore 13 too, but if not make sure you do not tick “Issue Traffic
Regulation Orders (TROs) to control the amount and type of traffic on
roads” as this is the law used to ban trail riding.

14. No. (See below for help with reasons)
15. This is a really tricky question, as it is making an assumption
that you have answered yes to 14.
16. No.
17. Another tricky one, as it makes an assumption that you have
answered yes to 16.

18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 can be ignored.

25. Gives you the opportunity for further comments.

The Trail Riders Fellowship and the Green Lane Association give the
following advice:
• explain your interest in trail riding;
• describe what you like about going into the countryside by
motorbike or 4x4, and the benefits you gain from it;
• explain how you support rural businesses, including trail riding
providers, garages, cafes, B and Bs, etc;
• be an advocate for access without prejudice.

Cheers, Bob

[chr1s]

Thanks Bob....I've completed it.

[Grumpy Jase]

Thanks Bob,

I've completed it as well. I havent trail ridden for years, but might want to get going again soon before the option is taken away from us all. From the questionaire it seems like they have already made up their minds, a point I made in my responses. It seems highly undemocratic.

Jason