Peak District trail riding under threat

Under plans to protect some of the park's unsurfaced roads, new traffic regulation orders could be used as part of plans to improve 23 countryside routes that have been assessed as potentially unsustainable.

The work will be carried out with the police and Derbyshire and Staffordshire County Councils. Management plans for the other 15 routes will be drawn up after work on the first eight has been completed.

Councillor Andrew Marchington, chair of the Peak District National Park Authority's services committee, said: "We are seeking to find a permanent solution to the problems that exist on these routes and others in the national park. By using all the powers at our disposal, and working with our partners, we aim to build a consensus on how these routes can be properly protected while still allowing lawful use of the land by all groups. By doing this we hope to solve the problems that exist rather than just move them on to another part of the national park."

The first eight routes that will be looked at will be: Brough Lane, Brough/Shatton; Chapelgate, Edale/Chinley; Long Causeway, Bamford/Sheffield; Moorlands Lane, Bonsall; School Lane, Great Hucklow; Shatton Lane, Brough/Shatton; Washgates, Hartington Upper Quarter, Staffordshire.