Answered If your'e in the UK would you ride on a public footpath in the countryside?

[Shifty]

Sometimes there are lovely accessible footpaths between bridleways and byeways, would you ride on them?
PS- No need to comment on the law in this area, trespass/private land blah blah, just if you would consider riding along them?

 

[steve_sordy]

Yes. I will be respectful of course. I consider it to be doing my bit to keep the paths open and in use.
I tip my hat to those that took part in the mass trespass on Kinder Scout that gave us the access that we actually have right now in the UK.

 

[highpeakrider]

Nope I keep on what I’m allowed to ride.

 

[R120]

Depends, locally to me there are well used footpaths which have people on them all day all year round and I wouldn't ride on them, but there are others deep in the woods which link a couple of trails where I have never seen another person on.

 

[miPbiP]

consider - yes, but doing it depends on context, where and when and why and how.

 

[gwing]

Yes, for sure. However although around here only 3% or so of the paths are too narrow and heavily used to consider well over 50% are either overgrown or more frequently impassable due to the number of anti-cycle measures deployed by an unhelpful council.

 

[Gary]

I already do every single day.
not just in the countryside. in towns and the city as well.

Why?

 

[Fivetones]

I do. If there are walkers then obviously I give them the usual amount of respect.

 

[Andy A]

We always do it now as some of the paths are so wide and of course we respect walkers when and if we meet them.

 

[OldBean]

Yes Minister I could not possibly comment .......
BUT I have ridden a few Bridle Paths which morph into footpaths for no apparent reason so then what do I do ???
Round here I keep away from popular weekend paths and seek out the underused ones during the week .....In the event of a meeting, a dismount and a cheery " Hello what a nice dog" usually brings a smile ..not so good if there is no dog!
PS I pick up litter as I go ,Especially those ghastly metallic helium balloons which pollute the countryside...should be banned.
I am of course based in Eire!

 

[Gary]

PS- No need to comment on the law in this area, trespass/private land blah blah,

Yeah... Except I think you possibly need to have a look at how our access laws in Scotland actually work before lumping us in with the rest of the UK in your question.

 

[Shifty]

Yeah... Except I think you possibly need to have a look at how our access laws in Scotland actually work before lumping us in with the rest of the UK in your question.

Yea yes right to roam and all that. Lucky Scotland ???????

I already do every single day.
not just in the countryside. in towns and the city as well.

Why?

The reason why? is I wondered what the general consensus was. I’m new to getting about on the e-mtb and there’s a few nice bridalways linked by footpaths out in the sticks in Wiltshire.. this Is in ??????? , sorry to irk our Scottish friends by not remembering their own rights to roam differences etc (lumping them in as same as England as the contributor put!)
So in a nutshell was wondering if it was a red line that MUST NOT be crossed etc

 

[Gary]

TBF I've lived in England a few of my years on this planet and while I did just used common sense and courtesy and continued to ride exacly where I wanted to. Often bumping into land owners and stopping for a chat (as opposed to any sort of argument).
A friendly attitude, decent social skills and a smile go a long way.
Obvz striking good looks and a Scottish accent don't hurt

 

[Shifty]

TBF I've lived in England a few of my years on this planet and while I did just used common sense and courtesy and continued to ride exacly where I wanted to. Often bumping into land owners and stopping for a chat (as opposed to any sort of argument).
A friendly attitude, decent social skills and a smile go a long way.
Obvz striking good looks and a Scottish accent don't hurt

Haha love it!

 

[Gee]

Yes, regularly do. Being respectful, giving way to others and not hooning it if there is a chance of upseting someone seems to work ok for me.

 

[billwarwick]

Depends, locally to me there are well used footpaths which have people on them all day all year round and I wouldn't ride on them, but there are others deep in the woods which link a couple of trails where I have never seen another person on.[/QUO

.
Same as this. Only problem is lifting the heavy bike over gates and stiles.

 

[Dax]

Depends. Something that is busy with walkers, no. Something that has few to none, maybe.

If you do, don't be a dick about it, give way to walkers, rescue little old ladies from swamps, etc.

 

[Mikerb]

Sadly the vast majority of public footpaths receive no maintenance and many are not even marked anymore. There are public footpaths which are the ( supposedly) the responsibility of the local authority...not to be confused by paths marked as "public footpath" in Forestry Commission owned areas etc which may or may not be a designated footpath as far as the law is concerned but just marked as such by the Forestry Commission. Then of course there are the few footpaths that are in fact maintained and way marked by the local authority. They tend to be the ones associated with some other form of countryside attraction and are well used. The latter I would avoid, the former I ride if I need to.
Not sue if the same situation exists countrywide but throughout my county the local authority is responsible ( supposedly) for the surface of the footpath yet there are only about 4 or 5 country rangers county wide and they have little or no machinery or finance!! The landowner is responsible for keeping the footpath clear of crop and hedgerow growth...…….well that's a joke, at least around here.
So in general apart from a small number of popular footpaths, no one gives a damn.

 

[Mikerb]

…..forgot to say....if a farmer ploughs up a footpath they are supposed to reinstate the surface within 2 weeks. Another joke.

 

[HORSPWR]

I figure if the analogue skate boarders, electric skate boarders, roller bladers, kids on bikes on their way to school, mobility scooters and nearly every other pucker can ride on the footpath then so can I.

 

[miPbiP]

So in a nutshell was wondering if it was a red line that MUST NOT be crossed etc

No it's not.

The rule is DBAD (Don't Be A Dick).

Best at quiet times, always yield to walkers with a smile, be mindful that any bend could reveal kids, dogs, anyone scampering about. (Same as a bridleway actually).

Be safe and don't compromise anyone else's enjoyment of the path.

Pick your times well you'll almost never meet anyone else anyway.

 

[Pukmeister]

In such circumstances I would yield to pedestrians, horses etc and ride respectfully unless the footpath was specifically covered by a byelaw forbidding cycles (we have one locally with signage). To contravene such a byelaw is inexcusable and will land you in front of the local magistrate if caught, its not worth the hassle so I dismount and walk it.

 

[MitchF]

Yep

 

[Benson]

A friendly attitude, decent social skills and a smile go a long way.
Obvz striking good looks and a Scottish accent don't hurt

Group ride then was it Gary? ?

 

[SquireRides]

If you know any footpaths that are easily ride-able and have been used by bikes/horses for some years, go get them reclassified as bridleways. It doesn't seem to be a lot of effort (but probably just a slow process). Well worth doing. You can usually find the forms on your council's website.

 

[Terry]

As I understand it, In England it is only illegal to ride on a footpath if it is covered by a by law or a traffic act restriction. These normally display a no cycling sign. If it is not and you ride it you may be acting unlawfully an committing a trespass against the land owner. If they, or their legal representative asks you to leave then you must.
If you have the landowners permission then you can legally ride.
Do not confuse a footpath with a footway which is the pavement or path alongside the road and part of the highway system. It is illegal to ride these unless it is a multi user path which will display the round blue cycle signs. Illegal is a criminal offence, unlawful is a civil offence!

 

[SquireRides]

As I understand it, In England it is only illegal to ride on a footpath if it is covered by a by law or a traffic act restriction. These normally display a no cycling sign. If it is not and you ride it you may be acting unlawfully an committing a trespass against the land owner. If they, or their legal representative asks you to leave then you must.
If you have the landowners permission then you can legally ride.
Do not confuse a footpath with a footway which is the pavement or path alongside the road and part of the highway system. It is illegal to ride these unless it is a multi user path which will display the round blue cycle signs. Illegal is a criminal offence, unlawful is a civil offence!

I think you probably shouldn't be on the footpath *unless* you've been given permission by the landowner. Otherwise you are trespassing. Totally right that it's then a civil law issue for the landowner to prosecute you.

I mean, I wouldn't camp in your back garden just because you didn't put a 'no camping' sign up, saying' well it's up to him to prosecute me if its a problem'.

Unless I see you've been letting people camp there for years, and I can reasonably assume you have a 'permissive campsite'!

 

[MitchF]

OP ???

 

[boneht]

I see no good reason not to cycle on footpaths unless it would cause a problem for people walking. I always slow right down, especially if there are children or animals involved.
I cycle on pavements too but with great care and dismount rather than cycle past pedestrians.

 

[HORSPWR]

I think you probably shouldn't be on the footpath *unless* you've been given permission by the landowner. Otherwise you are trespassing. Totally right that it's then a civil law issue for the landowner to prosecute you.

I mean, I wouldn't camp in your back garden just because you didn't put a 'no camping' sign up, saying' well it's up to him to prosecute me if its a problem'.

Unless I see you've been letting people camp there for years, and I can reasonably assume you have a 'permissive campsite'!

Land owners don’t normally install footpaths for pedestrians, councils usually do, if it’s anything like here in Australia. The land that abuts the road isn’t owned by the land owner, the council owns it and uses it to run services and the footpath.