Regular readers of these pages will be aware that I've been dealing lately with a number of residents' concerns relating to motorbikes, quads and off-road vehicles causing problems by trespassing on public footpaths and open spaces in our villages, on the coast and in the countryside (please see post dated Thursday 25 February 2021 https://robcrute-blackhall.blogspot.com/2021/02/reporting-bikes-and-off-road-vehicles.html for background details).
As a member of the council's Safer and Stronger Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee I took part in a remote meeting this morning where committee members looked ahead to setting its future work programme. Given that concerns about off-road vehicles have been reported in communities across the entire county I've asked that the committee considers including in its work programme an overview of this issue, which would look at ways of working with partners to address the concerns of residents and businesses about the scale and impact of off-road vehicles accessing public open spaces.
Committee work programmes will be agreed after the local elections in May and I'll update on progress in due course, but in the meantime if you experience problems relating to off-road vehicles please refer to the contact details included in the article mentioned above.
Additional details about yesterday’s scrutiny meeting can be found in a Northern Echo article published here: https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/19127733.durham-county-council-call-nuisance-rider-crackdown/