Bridleways

(asked on 1st March 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many publicly accessible bridleways there are in England.


Answered by
Rebecca Pow Portrait
Rebecca Pow
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 10th March 2021

Most recent figures estimate that there are in the region of 32,000km of bridleway in England although horse riders can also use over 6,000km of byways (restricted byways and Byways Open to All Traffic). These figures are not fully confirmed by the Government.

Local authorities are responsible for the management and maintenance of public rights of way. They are required to keep a Rights of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP) to plan improvements to the rights of way network in their area to provide a better experience for a range of users including horse riders.

Consideration is being given to how the Environmental Land Management scheme could fund the creation of new paths, such as footpaths and bridleways, providing greater access for horse riders.

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