lacroupade
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 14, 2009
- Messages
- 9,208
Guys
I've started this as a new thread so as to attract maximum attention. A bit like Terra's recent plea for objections about potential closure of some Yorks routes, we need you to object, by email or letter, to the potential closure of another important route in South Wales, in this case Sarn Helen.
There is a proposal before the council to reduce access to less than three months of the year, between June and late August, which will seriously restrict its use.
The nub of it is that this route has been left to its own devices for many years, with no maintenance, while being badly eroded by a number of users, but particularly vehicles belonging Walters, a local civil engineering firm that owns large tracts of local land that has been used for open-cast mining, gravel extraction etc.. As well as seriously damaging parts of this route, Walters frequently block the Sarn (which is an ancient Roman road) to allow motorsports events, hosted by them, to cross or use sections of it (they own a large parcel of land which has a motorsports arena on it). Many of these closures are unlicensed and illegal.
Walters has been pressing the council for closure of the Sarn for some time, citing illegal access to their site from the ROW - which is of course an irrelevance since all they need to do is fence their property off from it. Instead they have taken to blocking the Sarn itself at times with boulders and trees.
The following text has been obtained by Extreme from the guy helping to steer the objections, representing ROWAN (Rights of Way Alliance Neath), and covers the issues you might want to cite in your objection....but please be careful to use your own words or interpretation - your objection need not be as detailed in all cases. Its WELL WORTH doing, since feedback is that once the scale of objection is clear, the council will recognise its responsibilities and overturn the proposal.
To make a brief objection to this new TRO to Neath Port-Talbot Council by emailing or writing to;
Clive Williams
Principal Countryside Access Officer
Environmental Directorate
Neath Port-Talbot Council
The Quays
Brunel Way
Baglan Energy Parks
Briton Ferry
Neath SA11 2GG
[email protected]
01639 686196
Copies of all letters / emails will be placed before the Councillors who sit on the Environment & Highways Scrutiny Committee/ Cabinet Board. I've sat in a meeting with them recently, they're very fair & decent & I'm very confident that they will not allow this through once they gauge the full extent of opposition. The key issues to mention in the letter;
The extended TRO is being requested due to;
1) Ongoing damage to the road surface &
2) To improve the amenity of the area through which the road runs.
Re. 1) The surface of the Sarn Helen Roman Road IS in a mess, that's not in dispute. It's in a mess because the local authority allowed the suface to be ruined over many years when the opencast colliery was operating and didn't make them repair the road when they packed up & left. Since then, there has been NO maintenance. It is a naturally wet & boggy terrain, there has been no attention to existing drainage or no thought to new drainage solutions. It is used by heavy Plant belonging to the landowner, as well as a variety of vehicles participating in rallies, speed trials, off-roading & 4x4 events, (under the umbrella of Walters Motorsports).
Re. 2) The 'amenity' is a mixed use forestry / mineral extraction facility with quarrying & opencast still functioning within the immediate locality. There is heavy Plant & agricultural traffic passing though as well as all the motor-sports events that are held there. The landowner has obtained permission to install wind-turbines & a waste processing / waste transfer station. The landowner appears to be doing their level best to ruin the area - how on earth can they claim to wish to improve the amenity by excluding public traffic?
Some of the locals who enjoy this amenity have worked hard to keep the road surface in some sort of basic order, as well as keeping the hedges, trees, & other foliage cut back off the road.
You may also wish to mention the status of this road as one of the UK's more attractive facilities to leisure based off-roaders, cyclists, etc. As well as the fact that it has been in use by the public for the best part of 2 Millennia! And it's well-used by disabled people for leisure & recreational purposes which will be stopped if the TRO extension is agreed.
IMPORTANT - please help us to monitor the number of objections by adding a post if you've been able to email the council for us? And of course you don't need to live anywhere near Wales to object - just the intent to drive this historical route one day will suffice.
THANKS Paul & Colin.:thumb2:thumb2:thumb2
I've started this as a new thread so as to attract maximum attention. A bit like Terra's recent plea for objections about potential closure of some Yorks routes, we need you to object, by email or letter, to the potential closure of another important route in South Wales, in this case Sarn Helen.
There is a proposal before the council to reduce access to less than three months of the year, between June and late August, which will seriously restrict its use.
The nub of it is that this route has been left to its own devices for many years, with no maintenance, while being badly eroded by a number of users, but particularly vehicles belonging Walters, a local civil engineering firm that owns large tracts of local land that has been used for open-cast mining, gravel extraction etc.. As well as seriously damaging parts of this route, Walters frequently block the Sarn (which is an ancient Roman road) to allow motorsports events, hosted by them, to cross or use sections of it (they own a large parcel of land which has a motorsports arena on it). Many of these closures are unlicensed and illegal.
Walters has been pressing the council for closure of the Sarn for some time, citing illegal access to their site from the ROW - which is of course an irrelevance since all they need to do is fence their property off from it. Instead they have taken to blocking the Sarn itself at times with boulders and trees.
The following text has been obtained by Extreme from the guy helping to steer the objections, representing ROWAN (Rights of Way Alliance Neath), and covers the issues you might want to cite in your objection....but please be careful to use your own words or interpretation - your objection need not be as detailed in all cases. Its WELL WORTH doing, since feedback is that once the scale of objection is clear, the council will recognise its responsibilities and overturn the proposal.
To make a brief objection to this new TRO to Neath Port-Talbot Council by emailing or writing to;
Clive Williams
Principal Countryside Access Officer
Environmental Directorate
Neath Port-Talbot Council
The Quays
Brunel Way
Baglan Energy Parks
Briton Ferry
Neath SA11 2GG
[email protected]
01639 686196
Copies of all letters / emails will be placed before the Councillors who sit on the Environment & Highways Scrutiny Committee/ Cabinet Board. I've sat in a meeting with them recently, they're very fair & decent & I'm very confident that they will not allow this through once they gauge the full extent of opposition. The key issues to mention in the letter;
The extended TRO is being requested due to;
1) Ongoing damage to the road surface &
2) To improve the amenity of the area through which the road runs.
Re. 1) The surface of the Sarn Helen Roman Road IS in a mess, that's not in dispute. It's in a mess because the local authority allowed the suface to be ruined over many years when the opencast colliery was operating and didn't make them repair the road when they packed up & left. Since then, there has been NO maintenance. It is a naturally wet & boggy terrain, there has been no attention to existing drainage or no thought to new drainage solutions. It is used by heavy Plant belonging to the landowner, as well as a variety of vehicles participating in rallies, speed trials, off-roading & 4x4 events, (under the umbrella of Walters Motorsports).
Re. 2) The 'amenity' is a mixed use forestry / mineral extraction facility with quarrying & opencast still functioning within the immediate locality. There is heavy Plant & agricultural traffic passing though as well as all the motor-sports events that are held there. The landowner has obtained permission to install wind-turbines & a waste processing / waste transfer station. The landowner appears to be doing their level best to ruin the area - how on earth can they claim to wish to improve the amenity by excluding public traffic?
Some of the locals who enjoy this amenity have worked hard to keep the road surface in some sort of basic order, as well as keeping the hedges, trees, & other foliage cut back off the road.
You may also wish to mention the status of this road as one of the UK's more attractive facilities to leisure based off-roaders, cyclists, etc. As well as the fact that it has been in use by the public for the best part of 2 Millennia! And it's well-used by disabled people for leisure & recreational purposes which will be stopped if the TRO extension is agreed.
IMPORTANT - please help us to monitor the number of objections by adding a post if you've been able to email the council for us? And of course you don't need to live anywhere near Wales to object - just the intent to drive this historical route one day will suffice.
THANKS Paul & Colin.:thumb2:thumb2:thumb2
