Mill Lane in Bingley has been obstructed for many years. Although it is a bridleway which begins in Otley Road, the other end joins Tewit Lane, part of which has been wrongly defined as a footpath. This anomaly enabled the owners to claim that Mill Lane was a cul-de-sac: they then built a conservatory and an ornamental pond on the bridleway!

The Trust submitted documentary evidence to show that Mill Lane and Tewit Lane had historically been a continuous route, all of which should be bridleway. With the skilful negotiation of Michelle Gillingham of the Esholt and Thackley Bridleways Association, the owner has now proposed a diversion around the obstructions and, all being well, we hope that the route will reopen next year.

A Best Value Review of the North Yorkshire County Council’s (NYCC) Rights of Way Department has resulted in the council giving priority to processing well-researched claims. This is a welcome change with the legal department now also adopting a more proactive approach.

High Mill Lane, Addingham, to West Hall in Nesfield

Evidence was first submitted by the Trust to NYCC in 1997 that this ford across the River Wharfe should be added to the definitive map as a bridleway. This year North Yorkshire’s legal department has succeeded in persuading the landowners of the strength of the case.

The process of reopening the route will entail a creation and diversion order, which may take a little while. We hope this important link will be open for all to enjoy in time for next summer.

This lane runs from Middleton Lodge to Owler Park Road in Ilkley. In 1997 the Trust submitted evidence to support a claim previously made by users that this footpath should be upgraded to bridleway status. This year BMC have made the order to modify the status of paths nos. 1 & 3 (Owler Park Road). Unfortunately the Council has received an objection from a landowner; if he cannot be persuaded to withdraw it, this matter will have to go to a public inquiry. So we are keeping our fingers crossed.

Because this lane runs northward from the Middleton Lodge track it cannot be confirmed as a bridleway until Middleton 1 has been resolved. However, as a result of the historical evidence submitted by the Trust, NYCC legal department has reached agreement with the landowners to make a creation order for a bridleway along the route.

The third public inquiry into this matter took place this September and the Trust has provided a large volume of evidence to assist the council and the BHS who are fighting to retain the route.

In 1998 YDNP received an application from the landowners to downgrade this path; they claimed that it had been wrongly identified as a bridleway by the parish surveyor in 1950 and should more properly be a footpath. In 2000 the Trust submitted documentary evidence which included several county road maps and various deeds that showed that Malham Moor 10 had once been an important old market-town road.

Last year the County Council decided not to downgrade the bridleway. However, the landowners immediately lodged an appeal against the decision but no grounds of appeal or background papers have been sent to the Government Office.

The YDNP have recently written to the landowner’s solicitor asking if they intend to continue with their appeal and are awaiting a reply. Astonishingly, we have been informed that the Government Office does not have a deadline for submission of the outstanding items.

Part of the bridleway, which is still not available to horseriders, crosses Chapel Fell, land that is currently the subject of a grant under the Defra Countryside Stewardship scheme, and includes two permissive footpaths that link to the bridleway.  For details, see http://countrywalks.defra.gov.uk.   Then go to Rural Development > Public Access > Conservation Walks > North Yorkshire > Chapel Fell, near Skipton (grid reference SD 881679). One condition of awards under this scheme is that existing definitive rights of way should be fully open and available. Clearly that does not apply in this case. The bridleway has been blocked to horseriders for a number of years, and was obstructed when the Countryside Stewardship scheme first started.