4 The Rights of Way Network in East Sussex 4.1 Facts and Figures 4.1.1 The network of public rights of way in East Sussex is approximately 2,211 miles (3,558km), broken down as follows: Percentage of the total Classification of Public Right of Way miles kilometres network Public Footpaths 1,614 2,597 73% Public Bridleways 465 748 21% Restricted Byways (former RUPPs) 88 142 4% Byways Open to All Traffic 44 71 2% Map showing the public rights of way network in East Sussex © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. East Sussex County Council 100019601.2006 4.1.2 Public rights of way include the following designations: • Public footpaths are public rights of way on foot only; • Public bridleways are available to the public on foot, horse back, leading a horse and bicycle; • Byways open to all traffic carry full highway rights for all users including motorists; • Restricted byways are open to those that can use a bridleway and non- motorised vehicles (such as a horse and cart). 27 All public rights of way are legally open to mobility vehicles for disabled people. However, many public rights of way (especially many footpaths) are not physically available to mobility vehicles (see 5.6). 4.1.3 The introduction of geographic information systems (computerised or digitised mapping) and GPS (global positioning system) means that there is greater opportunity for public rights of way records to be updated more accurately. More detail on the use of computerised mapping can be found in 5.11. 4.1.4 The make up of the rights of way network differs greatly between the South Downs and the rest of the county. The table below shows that just over half the rights of way network in the Downs is available to horse riders and cyclists whereas this drops to less than a quarter outside the Downs. Footpaths Bridleways Byways South Downs 49.5% 46.0% 4.5% Rest of East Sussex 77.2% 16.6% 6.2% 4.1.5 The density of the network varies slightly. In East Sussex as a whole there are on average 3.35 miles of public rights of way per square mile. In the South Downs this rises to 4.07 miles of public rights of way per square mile. 4.1.6 In addition to the public rights of way network are off-road cycle tracks which are normally only open to cyclists and pedestrians. In East Sussex there are about 25 miles of off-road cycle tracks (which are not bridleways or byways). These cycle tracks form part of the National Cycle Network (NCN) and there are two routes passing through East Sussex – NCN2 and NCN21. More detail on these routes in 5.4. Cycleways either within or beside a carriageway are not included, however these can play an important role in linking the network available to cyclists. 4.2 Conservation 4.2.1 Much of the county is protected by a number of different conservation designations. These can have an effect on the management of public rights of way and areas of access land which fall within a designated site. The County Council also has a duty to conserve biodiversity. The most significant conservation designations within East Sussex include: • Two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (the Sussex Downs and the High Weald) • A number of Sites of Special Scientific Interest. 4.2.2 There is also the designated South Downs National Park covering much of the South Downs and parts of the Low Weald. More detail on each SD conservation designation can be found in Appendix D. 4.2.3 There are a number of other environmental considerations that need to be made when managing public access to the countryside. There may be situations where conservation or environmental management interests conflict with public rights of way and other access arrangements. One 28 example is the future management of the Ouse and Cuckmere flood plains where there may be a need to divert or extinguish affected paths. 4.2.4 There are other areas of conflict. In particular, the sometimes difficult balance between the need to provide public access against the need to protect environmentally sensitive sites. The County Council will ensure that the impact of public access will be properly assessed before opening up new areas of access or improving existing routes. East Sussex County Council is committed to meeting its responsibilities concerning protected landscapes, flora and fauna and other conservation and environmental issues when managing, maintaining and improving the rights of way network. 4.3 Characteristics of the County and the Path Network 4.3.1 East Sussex is a largely rural county with an area of 665 square miles (1,722 square kilometres), of which 63.4% is farmland, with major urban areas concentrated on the coast. The landscape of the county is diverse. For public rights of way this presents a variety of surface maintenance issues – from the well drained chalk Downs to the heavy wet clays and sandstone of the Weald. Map Showing Landscape Character Areas in East Sussex © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. East Sussex County Council 100019601.2006 4.3.2 The Countryside Agency’s map of landscape character areas (above) shows five different landscapes in East Sussex: High Weald, Low Weald, South Downs, Pevensey Levels and Rye Levels (part of the Romney Marsh landscape character area which is mainly in Kent). 29 4.3.3 A detailed assessment of each of these landscape character areas can be found as Appendix E. 4.4 The State of the Network 4.4.1 There is no comprehensive data relating to the current condition of the public rights of way network in East Sussex, with no full survey having been undertaken for at least 40 years. Therefore, the condition of the network can only be estimated. 4.4.2 However, a survey of 5% of the network is carried out annually to produce a Best Value Performance Indicator (BVPI). A random sample of paths are surveyed using specific criteria to assess the proportion of paths which are available and easy to use. The survey uses a standardised methodology, recognised and used by the majority of local highway authorities. The results are provided to the Audit Commission. 4.4.3 The method has been used to generate the BVPI figure since 2001/02. Whilst the relatively small sample makes it impossible to properly identify trends, the results provide a relatively consistent picture over the six years since being adopted. However, due to circumstances such as weather conditions (for example flooding) there can be years when the figure is unusually low or high. This may have been the situation in 2004/05 and 2006/07 when high and low results were recorded and only by looking at the results over a long period can a more realistic overview of the network be gained. Averaging the figures below across the six years that the survey has been undertaken suggests that about 64.4% of the county’s rights of way network is easy to use. Year of 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 survey Paths easy 63.5% 63.6% 67.9% 72.2% 66.5% 52.8% to use 4.4.4 These figures seem to suggest that the path network has got noticeably worse over the last two years. However, since 2005 the survey methodology has been reviewed and refined and is now interpreted and implemented more strictly and consistently across the whole county. 4.4.5 As well as providing an overall snapshot of the network the survey also gives an indication of the nature of the problems that exist. These can broadly be broken down into enforcement and maintenance issues. 4.4.6 The County Council is aiming to undertake a full survey of the public rights of way network by the end of 2008/09 which will give accurate base line data against which future performance can be measured. South Downs 4.4.7 In East Sussex there are approximately 338 miles of public rights of way that are within the Sussex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty SD (AONB), 46% (155 miles) of which are public bridleways. These are 30 managed on a day-to-day basis by the South Downs Joint Committee (SDJC). Due to the dedicated management and nature of the Downs (being mainly well drained chalk) the surface of the rights of way network is generally considered to be in a good condition. 4.4.8 Volunteers acting on behalf of the SDJC carry out a 100% survey of the network within the AONB. This survey showed that in 2005/06 the SD percentage of public rights of way which were easy to use was 96.5%. However, this survey does not use the same methodology as the County Council’s BVPI survey, therefore it’s very difficult to make direct comparisons between the figures for East Sussex and the South Downs. Rest of East Sussex 4.4.9 Away from the South Downs, the majority of significant surface problems are concentrated on the byway and bridleway network and as such are not necessarily reflected by the small sample of the BVPI survey. 4.4.10 The problems are prevalent across the county in areas where the sub-soil is weald clay and arise as a consequence of the naturally poor drainage conditions and an historic lack of surface and ditch maintenance. It is estimated that approximately 38 miles of byways and bridleways require significant surface improvement work.