Rights of way - maintenance
The Public Rights of Way Team is responsible for managing over 10,000km of rights of way, the longest network in England.
As the Highway Authority for North Yorkshire, the County Council responsibilities include: - Asserting and protecting the rights of the public to use rights of way;
- Ensuring that rights of way are free from obstructions;
- Ensuring that items of furniture on a right of way, e.g. stiles, gates, bridges etc, are in good condition and easy to use;
- Providing at least 25 per cent of the costs for maintenance and replacement of furniture;
- Maintaining the surface of the right of way to a standard suitable for their use, including the cutting of undergrowth;
- Installation of signposts where the Right of Way leaves the metalled road; and
- Waymarking of routes that may be difficult to use.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park and the North York Moors National Park manage approximately 4,000km of the network through an agency agreement with the County Council. Outside the National Parks, maintenance of public rights of way is delivered by seven area rangers. Find out more about ranger teams. The team also manages an expanding group of over 170 countryside volunteers who support the work of the whole countryside service including surveying, maintaining and managing the rights of way network, managing local wildlife and historical sites and maintaining our specialist databases. A breakdown of the local public rights of way network in North Yorkshire (length km) is as follows. | North Yorkshire County Council outside National Parks | North York Moors National Park Authority | Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority | Total network in the County of North Yorkshire | Footpaths | 4,645 km | 1,388 km | 1,296 km | 7,329 km | Cycle tracks | 37 km | 0 km | 0 km | 37 km | Bridleways | 1,389 km | 775 km | 542 km | 2,706 km | Restricted byways | 9 km | 0 km | 0 km | 9 km | Byways open to all traffic | 7 km | 15 km | 31 km | 53 km | Total length | 6,087 km | 2,178 km | 1,869 km | 10,134 km |
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Latest rights of way news
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Rights of way - enforcement
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Rights of way - information and advice
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Rights of way - ranger services
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Rights of way - report an issue
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