Mountain biking on the Cliffe

Recently there have been a number of concerns about increased mountain bike activity on the Cliffe and Nesscliffe Hill. There have been reports of bikers creating new tracks and fears about the potential for erosion and for collisions/injuries where these tracks meet existing footpaths. The area is becoming more popular for biking as the rides are shared on social media, and in turn this has led to parking problems in usual parking areas as well as on roads surrounding the hills.

Some people have clearly been taking matters into their own hands – there have been some incidents where obstacles have been placed on tracks used by bikers, placed in such a way to deliberately cause accidents and injury. These incidents have been reported to the police – they will not be tolerated.

Action is required to minimise any risk of injury and to prevent further damage to our country park and to the Cliffe, whilst recognising the needs of the different users of the sites. A meeting is taking place via video conference on Thursday 18 June to agree what actions will be taken. This meeting will involve members of our two Parish Councils, the Shropshire Council Countryside Management team, the local police force, and other parties with a vested interest. Everyone involved is committed to finding safe, sensible solutions.