Issue - meetings

To consider the application for the diversion of Public Footpath No.5 (part) in the parish of Moston (formerly Tetton)

The Committee received a report which detailed an application from Mrs Maureen Keeble, 1 Colleys Lane, Willaston, Nantwich (the applicant) requesting the Council to make an Order under section 119 of the Highways Act 1980 to divert part of Public Footpath No.5 in the parish of Moston (formally Tetton).

In accordance with Section 119(1) of the Highways Act 1980 it was within the Council’s discretion to make the Order if it appeared to the Council to be expedient to do so in the interests of the public or of the owner, lessee or occupier of the land crossed by the path.

The applicant owned the land over which the current and proposed diversion ran.  The section of Public Footpath No.5 Moston (formerly Tetton) to be diverted ran along a farm drive and through a working farm yard where there was a barn suffering from subsidence.  This posed safety issues to passing walkers and a temporary closure was already in place to divert the path along the proposed diversion route.

The proposed new route would leave the road west of the current start of the path.  It would enter a pasture field to follow a northerly direction along the west side of a fishing lake before joining the current path.  The new path would have a recorded width of 2 metres throughout and would have two gates; a kissing gate at the road and a pedestrian gate at a field boundary. 

The new route formed a more direct route for the public, as it disposed of the current ‘dog leg’ through the farmyard.  It also disposed of the possible conflict between walkers and vehicular traffic on the driveway and formed a more pleasant walk for the public in terms of its proximity to the wildlife on the lakes and views of the same.  For the landowner, the diversion would provide greater privacy and security and removed the possibility of danger to the public from the subsiding barn, which although temporary in nature, required substantial work to resolve in the long-term.

The Committee noted that no objections had been received and considered that the proposed route would not be substantially less convenient than the existing route.  Diverting the footpath would be of benefit to the landowner and the public, particularly in terms of safety from the subsiding barn.  It was therefore considered that the proposed route would be a satisfactory alternative to the current one and that the legal tests for the making and confirming of a diversion order were satisfied.

RESOLVED:

1          An Order be made under Section 119 of the Highways Act 1980, as amended by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, to divert part of Public Footpath No.5 Moston (formerly Tetton) by creating a new section of public footpath and extinguishing the current path as illustrated on Plan No.HA/029 on the grounds that it is expedient in the interests of the owner of the land crossed by the path and of the public.

2          Public Notice of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39