Riding out post-lockdown

With the easing of lockdown restrictions it's good to find that many people are starting to ride out again for longer distances and travelling further afield to do so. Where bridleways are concerned, it isn't a case of 'use them or lose them' - there's a myth that if they aren't ridden they can be removed from the map - they can't! It takes a lot of legal effort to 'extinguish' or 'stop up' a bridleway (or other public right-of-way). But it is certainly true that riders must use the bridleways to maintain a high profile amongst countryside users - we can't risk being sidelined. So keep using them, and if you find obstructions (overgrown vegetation, narrow or difficult gateways, bloomin' great holes where drains have collapsed, etc) you should report them to the appropriate Council rights-of-way department. They have a duty of care towards all legitimate rights-of-way users.