Anne Woodward explained that a survey had been put together about horse riding provision in the borough. The mission statement of the group was improve and minimise any safety risks to horse riders and ensure that there was adequate off road multi use paths. There had been a constant increase in road use and population across the borough, which would have a further impact on the safety of road users. Across the borough, only 67km out of 311km were accessible to horses, with Cookham being the least accessible area of the borough with just 8% of Public Rights of Way being accessible. The Agriculture Bill was currently in the process of becoming law and would give grants to farmers who gave public access through their land.

The survey was untaken in March and looked to gain an insight into riding habits in the borough and make recommendations on how they could be improved. 129 reponses to the survey were received which was calculated to represent over 1,400 horses in the community. Looking at riding habits:

·         68% of riding time was spent hacking

·         Only 47% of this was off-road

·         48% only hacked directly from their yard

·         35% did not have any transport

·         100% wore hi-viz

For on-road experiences:

·         83% had experienced safety issues with vehicles

·         62% had experienced safety issues with cyclists

·         65% had experienced unpleasant/threatening behaviour from motorists

·         29% had experienced unpleasant/threatening behaviour from cyclists

For off-road experiences:

Cyclists were less of an issue off-road with 32% safety incidence rate. The bigger problem lay with dogs worrying or attacking horses (58%) and threatening behaviour from their owners or walkers (37%).

Cookham Bridle Circuit was a pleasant route for riders but much of it was now on the road. For some riders the only access to the bridle route was through busy roads which proved to be dangerous. Only 40% of respondents had ridden the route, with no parking/transport close to the start of the route being a significant factor. A number of suggestions had been received to improve this route, including having the route going though Bisham Woods and improving access to parking.

Another route was the Knowl Hill Bridle Circuit, which was split into a north and south section. 54% of those asked in the survey had ridden the cicuit, while 10% did not know about it. Reasons for not riding the route included:

·         20% too many road sections

·         30% no transport

·         20% no parking

Respondents suggested improvements by having a safe crossing of A4 (Knowl Hill and Littlewick Green) and by reducing the speed of traffic and improving safety at junctions.

The general sentiments from the survey were:

·         71% of respondents felt that riding had become less safe over the last 24 months and they would prefer to avoid riding on roads but have little option.

·         61% find it extremely frustrating that over the evolution of time, many bridleways now end at a main road.

·         65% would ride more if there was a better network of off-road linkages.

·         64% were in favour of upgrading all rights of way to multi-use access.

The key findings and recommendations included:

·         Increase in road traffic had made the some of the bridle circuits in the borough unsafe

·         Dog attacks were also significant, but many were not reported to the police

·         Horse riders did not use the roads by choice, but many were forced to

·         Education was seen as a key recommendation so that mutil-use access could be shared

·         Increase safety and signage in key areas

·         Invite volunteers from sub groups for contributions

Councillor Hunt said that it was a very comprehensive presentation. She said that the crossing with the A4 at Bottle Lane and at the common was always very busy. There was a crossing that had been made for cyclists and this could also be used by horse riders.

Anne Woodward said that it was a ‘zig zag’ for horse riders and was much easier to cross for cyclists. She suggested a crossing like the one at Windsor Park.

Councillor Sharpe said that he was puzzled by the report as it did not cover the other users, just horse riders. He also commented that the report only looked at a small portion of the borough, and that it would be more useful if it took on board other areas like walking and cycling.

The Chairman said that that they had tried to engage with these groups and that the report was comprehensive and well put together.

Anne Woodward said that the scope would be massive so they decided to focus on routes that had been promoted by the borough. They had received some comments from the Ascot/Sunninghill area and would like to gain more comments from other areas.

Councillor Brar said that she would speak with Anne Woodward about how to improve the bridleways that had been discussed as parts of them fell in her ward.

Lisa Hughes said that she supported increasing the number of multi-purpose routes across the borough. As a disabled user, it was important that users considered people who were more vulnerable than themselves.

Councillor Bowden said that he supported Councillor Sharpe’s comments. He suggested that certain areas of the borough could have increased signage on the road to warn drivers of the potential for horse riders to be using the same routes. Anne Woodward said that they were aware of issues in the area that Councillor Bowden had raised and said that more representatives from that area were needed so that they could deal with the problem.

Dom Lethbridge agreed with Councillor Brar and he wanted to help improve access on the routes. He suggested that they would use the volunteer resource from the National Trust to help.

Jacqui Wheeler commented that it was a good report and it showed that there were things that RBWM could look in to. They wanted to improve the situation for all road users and that ‘Share the Space’ road signage could be particularly effective, as it was educational for other road users.

The Chairman said that it would need to be borough wide, but this was the first report of detail that had been looked at and it was a good starting point.