6 minute read
LANING LIFE
by Lauren Eaton
What is it like being on the front line?
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I’m sure I don’t have to explain that the Green Lane Association works for the benefit of all users of vehicular rights of way in the UK, but what does that entail?
What do our reps and officers actually do, and why do we need to do it after all aren’t there authorities whose very job it is to manage our nation’s roads?
It is the responsibility of the police to police drivers, it is the council’s legal duty to maintain roads, GLASS has no legal responsibility to do anything at all, but one of the main reasons GLASS exists is that users of public vehicular rights of way were so often confronted by a lack of action from those whose legal duty it is to manage both roads and/or road users, that laners joined forces to hold authorities to account.
Unfortunately the blame when things go wrong is usually aimed directly at all vehicular users for simply wanting to exercise their right to drive well-maintained and policed public roads, and even more so at those who stand up and insist that authorities do their jobs.
There is rarely any pressure or blame laid at the feet of those who have the power to prosecute illegal driving or maintain public roads, and this is one big reason why we have so many ongoing problems, and the work of GLASS is so important. When lanes fall into disrepair people rarely ask...
The usual shout is...
We even see it inside our community, particularly on social media; a group of mud-pluggers tear up a lane/ private land, breaking the law, trespassing, and causing criminal damage, the go-to response is often...
Rarely is it asked what the authorities are doing about it, or it is presumed that reporting problems is a guaranteed way of getting responsible authorities to act - it is not!
The same can be said for a lack of maintenance, or weather damage, but before I explore that in more detail, on the following page is what we would usually do:
1. Report it.
If it is a case of illegal driving we’d do this via 101, or via email to any officers we have existing relationships with. No matter how much evidence is passed to us, the police can only act on matters of trespass or criminal damage if the injured party reports the crime. A third party cannot insist that prosecution on behalf of someone else takes place. It is vitally important that the witness report the crime themselves, or the matter will go no further. In maintenance matters we would report it to the responsible land owner, usually the county council, national park or similar organisation, and/or private individual, sometimes all of them, and possibly more (eg. Natural England, or Natural Resources Wales) may need to be involved further down the line.
2. Visit the site and/or contact the land owner
This could be the council, an organisation, or private individual. We’d discuss any maintenance or damage repairs required, explore prevention measures that could be put in place, and highlight any opportunities for signage. That's if the land owner is willing to speak to us - it’s not always easy to get a response, or even get someone to admit they’re the responsible party! This is usually far simpler when dealing with private individuals rather than large organisations or authorities. The latter vary in their receptivity greatly from county to county.
3. What happens next depends on the answers we get.
If the police prosecute someone for criminal damages, then the repair work may be payable by the culprit, if so this can be spent on rectifying any damage. If the council is willing and able to make good on repairs then they will do so, but, and this is unfortunately an all too common outcome (unless working with a private individual like a farmer), sometimes none of that happens.
We then need to keep the pressure on, negotiate when someone does respond to us, possibly threaten or carry out legal action if they don’t. We may have to fund and project manage the work, but only after we have exhausted all other options, and sought and received permission to do so.
Other outcomes include working under an authority as contractors or as volunteer workers, hiring in a contractor to fulfil the work, or taking legal action to force the land owner to do their legal duty. This could take months to years to organise, it shouldn’t, but in reality it does.
Working with farmers tends to be a lot more solutions orientated, work progresses much faster, and is often less costly in both time and money.
4. In the interim
During this time it is inevitable that we will be contacted by various interested parties dozens of times, asking why things haven’t been put right overnight. We will have faced lots of negativity, or even been completely ignored by various people essential to putting the matter right too.
We have to respond to these questions, give regular updates, and keep pushing to get a response from anyone who is holding up the work by being unwilling to communicate openly.
5. We get the work done!
Finally after a lot of negotiation, planning, time and effort we finally get to see the fruits of our labour.
This is a very brief overview of what can be a very laborious, frustrating, and complicated task. Invariably it will take up a huge amount of our volunteers’ time, and involve a large number of our team:
• reps - our front line staff • regional coordinators
• RoW officer and legal team to firmly put the pressure on
• comms officer in an attempt to negotiate without resorting to legal action, and to liaise with very disgruntled locals/land owners/authorities
• editor to design and print signage,
• finance officer to pay the bills
• members to help with any work that can be done by volunteers
• IT officer to update systems • every single member to pay their membership fee via our membership officer so we can afford it all,
• and the media officer to tell you all what we did!
No project is ever as simple as a Facebook post will have you believe!
Every person in that list has a day job to do too, most have partners, children and pets to care for, and an inordinate amount of them own Land Rovers - their time and patience are at a premium before they even begin to deal with the latest laning issue.
In what little free time they have left, they all somehow find the time to do it for the good of our community.
The future…
This laborious process can take years - I can name signage schemes that have taken FIVE YEARS to come to fruition, due to authorities dragging their feet, and dangerous repairs that have taken SEVEN before the local authority acted, and only then because GLASS threatened legal action.
Things are changing, the association is now seen as the go-to organisation when it comes to vehicular rights. It has the respect of many authorities, and enough members, and therefore funding, to ensure large works and legal action can take place where necessary.
The focus is also shifting from local action to one of nationwide change, and that is where we are going to see the transformation we all know our community needs; watch this space!
That’s all from me this month regarding GLASS news, but I promised you a look at my new truck! If you’re interested read on, if not, all the very best and stay safe!
Lauren x
