Path sign near Mellbreak copyright Michael Turner

Rights of Way Improvement Plan

We’re working with Cumbria County Council and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority to produce a ‘Rights of Way Improvement Plan’ for Cumbria. This will contain a list of actions aimed at improving access to the countryside for walkers, cyclists, horse riders and people with limited mobility.

What we will do

We want to make the network of footpaths, bridleways, restricted byways, byways, cycle tracks and permissive paths fit for modern day use. We are also considering ideas that encourage people to enjoy and understand the countryside.

Bikerack on back of minibus

Some ideas include:

  • new routes for walkers, cyclists, horse riders or people with limited mobility
  • footpaths, bridleways or cycleways needed to avoid busy roads
  • circular routes close to where people live, to encourage healthy exercise
  • dead-end routes that need extending, or routes with varying rights that need upgrading
  • services that would enable people to know where to go and what to do

Delivery reports

We have produced three annual actions plans in 2008-09, 2009-10 and the updated 2010-11plan. We also agreed that we would publish a delivery report highlighting what we achieved against each plan.