At the last Parish Council mee ng it was agreed that I should write to the County Council.

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Lewis Craig
5 years ago
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1 Forwarded message From: Robert Green Date: 6 March 2017 at 20:54 Subject: E5341 Newnham - Aston Cantlow To: peterendall@warwickshire.gov.uk Cc: johnhorner@warwickshire.gov.uk, jeffmorris@warwickshire.gov.uk, mike@gittus.com Dear Mr Endall At the last Parish Council mee ng it was agreed that I should write to the County Council. Councillor John Horner has referred me to you with respect to the temporary closure of the E5341. Following communica ons with Jeff Morris (Warwickshire County Council) in January concerning the above, our Parish Council secretary has asked me to gather feedback from the Newnham community regarding the above road which has been temporarily closed due to safety concerns and is now due to re-open on the 1st of October this year. 1/5

2 The descrip on of road is a euphemis c one, as in reality it is an un-metalled track that has become a 4x4 assault course or green laning route (another euphemism) at any hour of the day or night, any day of the year, under any weather condi ons and for any number of 4x4 off road vehicles (convoys included). It would appear that the more challenging the condi ons, the greater a rac on. There is a definite correla on with wet and bad weather and the number of vehicles passing through. Other users such as pedestrians, cyclists, and horse riders can physically no longer use the route, due to the damage caused. Addi onally, local residents were suffering distress, loss of sleep, and aggrava on with the noise and light pollu on at night. Late night usage is normal for these drivers. The prelude to the closure was one of harassment and distress to our community caused by these 4x4 vehicles circling the E5341 Bearley Road and Salters Lane. With the advent of the internet, insult is added to injury in that there is a website that responds to green laning in Warwickshire and low and behold the E5341 is listed, so increasing the vehicle numbers. The damage caused has becoming a self-fulfilling one, in that it is now dangerous and closed as a temporary measure. The following circulated to the Newnham community in February has universal support, and has been referred to the parish council. All Apologies to the longer standing members of the Newnham community who may well know the history of our lane, and that the posi on of where we are now is not a new one - namely the closure of the route was a result of having been damaged to the point of being unsafe and physically impassable. This is because we now have a 3 foot pond on route (in Smith s field) and extensive 2 foot deep wheel ruts to and from. The damage has been caused by 4x4 vehicles repeatedly traversing the route in all condi ons and at all mes of the day. Discoun ng the damage above, we now have these vehicles touring late at night and at high speed through the locality ie through Newnham hamlet and Aston Cantlow village. In addi on to the late night noise, some of these vehicles pass through in the early hours and have mul ple headlight arrangements which illuminate the whole countryside and consequently light up bedrooms almost as daylight - disturbing the sleeping occupants with engine revving noise as well. Furthermore, despite the road closure, before Christmas one 4x4, in addi on to all the above took it on himself to remove the road closed signs and then perform wheelies and loop de loops on the Newnham village green, the surrounding grass verges and in three intervening fields between Newnham and Aston Cantlow. The vehicle number and descrip on were reported to the Police, but evidently could not be traced. The presump on therefore was that the vehicle was untaxed and not insured. tried to stop the vehicle, a black Jeep Cherokee, but both took to the hedge to avoid being run over. It is quite a dis nc ve vehicle and has subsequently been seen by our Postman in Beoley near Redditch. Reinforced road blocking signs have now been put in place at either end and at the bridleway at the beginning of ground. This off roading or green laning as they prefer to call it, is all in aid of their (the 4x4 driver s) enjoyment and their fun. The we er the be er the greater the challenge!. Whilst single vehicles are usual, we o en have green laning clubs comprising of upwards of 10 four wheel drive vehicles in convoy. Having passed through Smith s field at the Newnham end and the 3 foot pond successfully (which they have created), they then traverse the route and then descending the escarpment down into Aston Cantlow. The next objec ve is to do it again in making a return journey. And so they do. The common reply when the drivers are accosted is that it is in their rights, and that they pay their taxes so you can t stop us. They then leave a mud trail on the tarmac road through Aston Cantlow village or Newnham hamlet when they ve 2/5

3 had enough. Why should public funds support their fun and hobby, having to pay the cost of repairs to the damage that is caused?. My view is that enough s enough. The route currently carries a road label, ie suitable for all traffic, although patently this is not the case and never has been. It is only suited to infrequent farm traffic. The off road vehicles - are the anomaly. Why is it necessary to deploy a four wheel drive vehicle adapted for off road use to pass over a public road?. Answer, because nothing else can. The tyres on these vehicles are so coarse that they can pick up the road surface like oxo cubes and sca er the material everywhere. I measured such a piece and it was the height of a 50 pence piece. When even they get stuck its like a 100 horsepower cheese grater! The current temporary closure is due to terminate on 30th of September 2017, and so far nothing has changed from when it was closed on 31st of March Two/three op ons are available, firstly to repair the whole route to allow for normal vehicle passage or secondly to down grade the usage category to that of bridleway repairing where necessary for this ac vity. Taking the first op on about 200 metres of road has been completely destroyed and would require total rebuilding including three of the 90 degree bends - the remaining 2km requiring a surface dressing restora on. The costs would be huge. Addi onally, as the road is not of Tarmac construc on, this repair/maintenance commitment would be ongoing year a er year. The second op on, and would require less road repairs, and so would be rela vely cheap but may be subject to legal challenges however. The third op on is of course to maintain the temporary closure indefinitely. As I said at the beginning, our road has a long history of conten on, resul ng in serious challenges to the Warwickshire County Council around 1980 and again in 2004 as to whether the route is a road in the first place. WCC decided on both occasions that it was an unclassified road and open to traffic. However Aston Cantlow records, ordinance survey maps and witness statements taken (s ll retained) indicate that during most of the last century the route was not iden fied or used as a route for traffic, but as a path or footpath route - for farm vehicles, pedestrians etc. Some Newnham residents can remember that it was mostly used as the footpath to Aston Cantlow school. The decision to change the category or classifica on would appear to have been made by accident in the eigh es when the former Alcester Rural Borough Council relinquished control of footpaths, and the control was handed to the WCC highways. This is when the unclassified road tle was added - in error. It was not challenged at the me as the significance was not realised. Nor was it opened to local community consulta on. Thirty years later and the advent of morons views change! Either way its the WCC problem. As a Newnham resident, I would firmly support re-classifying the road to bridleway which it should have been in the first place. At the last Parish Council monthly mee ng in the village hall, (a local land owner), (a former Parish Councillor) and myself a ended as well as John Horner who is our County Council councillor. The E5341 road was discussed the consensus being that as a community we should lobby for the road to be regraded as a bridleway, firstly by wri ng to WCC. Mr Horner said that he would let know whether it was best to write to Jeff Morris or to the Chief 3/5

4 Execu ve of WCC. Our problem now needs to be resolved. Our major point is that the designa on of road is a flawed one. The recent County Council s records iden fy this route as an E road along the whole route. However, we have in our possession records that iden fy that the route is part track and footpath, and a further part having no classifica on at all, ie just a field. This field link has been made between two separate routes with two separate origins and two different des na ons. This field link has no road substance or construc on material whatsoever. Needless to say that it here where the route is most dangerous Addi onally we have witness statements (some now deceased) taken from long term local residents that the route was never a road its primary func on throughout the last century being for Newnham school children to a end the school in Aston Cantlow. The owner of this material is reluctant to release to others due to a previous experience of the County Council loosing documenta on. However, he may be prepared to a end and witness photo copying in Warwick. In conclusion, our community do not want to deny access to the countryside, and to that extent would support the way re-designated as a Bridleway following appropriate restora on and repairs. A ached photos: 1. An illegal 4x4 vehicle using the closed road at 23:00 last week. The vehicle is untaxed probably not insured with no visible front number plate. It has been fi ed with a ligh ng bar on the roof which produces about five mes the normal car head light power on main beam. 2. Field damage by 4x4s 3. E5341 pond 4. Lane damage I (we) would appreciate your comments. Yours sincerely Robert Green Field damage.jpg 113K 4/5

5 E5341 Pond- 3.jpg 121K Lane Damage.jpg 129K 5/5

THE PROPOSED NETWORK RAIL (ESSEX AND OTHERS LEVEL CROSSING REDUCTION) ORDER DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT REFERENCE: TWA/17/APP/05

OBJ/148/ W 031 E20 SNIVELLERS THE PROPOSED NETWORK RAIL (ESSEX AND OTHERS LEVEL CROSSING REDUCTION) ORDER PUBLIC INQUIRY, 18 OCTOBER 2017 DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT REFERENCE: TWA/17/APP/05 OBJECTION BY