Tackling – and helping – the off-roaders

Five projects in different parts of Wales are aiming to strike a balance between conserving the environment and providing places for 4x4 drivers and scrambling motorcyclists to go off-road.

In several parts of Wales, powerful allterrain vehicles and bikes were damaging valuable habitats. So the Welsh Assembly Government asked CCW to work with partners to provide off-roading facilities and tackle illegal activity.

One of the main projects is in the Elan Valley where police have swapped the traditional patrol car for a 4x4 Landrover in order to tackle illegal off-road driving.

At the same time, posters asking “Where on earth can we ride?” have helped offroaders to know their rights and to stick to legal routes.

In urban areas too, CCW has been supporting projects to provide opportunities for legal offroading.

In Cardiff, where young bikers were damaging wildlife and disturbing other people in the city’s parks and open spaces, the local council has provided them with a motorcycling track on a reclaimed landfill site in the docks.

Mini bike users at Ystalyfera near Neath now have a purpose-built training centre whilst in Torfaen and Monmouthshire motorcycle patrols visit car parks, offering advice to off-road bikers, encouraging them to carry out their activities in a legal way.

“We decided that we could not ignore the fact that more and more people like to drive all sorts of vehicles in parks and in the countryside,” said Linda Ashton, Regional Countryside Officer with CCW.

“We had to find ways of stopping further damage to the countryside as well as recognising the needs of some groups within our society who enjoy offroading.”

“We are hoping to strike a balance between the need to conserve wildlife and landscapes and safeguard people’s quiet enjoyment of the countryside with providing suitable opportunities for offroaders.”