The Right To Roam could arrive earlier in some areas than
previously mooted in some parts of England.
Unfortunately they're mostly rubbish, flat parts like south-east
and central southern England, which according to rural affairs
minister Alan Michael should have full access, over and above
designated footpaths by summer 2004. Originally a one-off open access
day was planned for 2005, but it seems that the idea has been
replaced with a rolling opening. See press
release.
Meanwhile, as of yesterday, the Countryside and Rights of Way Act
requires local highway authorities to prepare Rights of Way
Improvement plans, which are intended to help local authorities plan
and implement a network of non-vehicular routes accessible to
everyone. These plans will become part of local Transport Plans in
2005. See here
for the mind-numbingly dull original press release.
Mapping Details Online
Provisional open access maps for the South East and Lower North
West and the draft map for Central Southern England have been issued
already. You can see the maps - including the NWW one which was
issued on 18 November, at the Countryside
Agency Mapping web site.
The lower North Western area covers Lancashire, part of North
Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Cheshire and the Peak District
National Park and you can see it here.
Well worth a look..
