Anger as country park barrier installed
A NEW BARRIER at Shipley Lane in Mapperley village is stopping people with pushchairs, mobility scooters and cycles from getting into the park.
Derbyshire County Council has erected the new barrier next to the controversial gate, which has recently been made permanent.
The barrier is supposed to block the road to motorbikes, but it has left disabled residents and mums with pushchairs unable to get through.
Mick McGill, who regularly bikes in the park, has had to replace the handle bars on his bike to fit through.
He said: "It annoyed me, we were told nothing about it. I rang the country park visitors' centre and they didn't tell me anything."
Joe Henshaw, who campaigned for months to have the lane reopened to traffic, said: "It just isn't on. It's just another example of the bad management of the country park trampling on the rights of the people in this village.
"It's probably not done much to stop the motorbikes anyway – they're mostly off-road motocross bikes and they can just go down the side where people walk through.
"The people mostly affected by it are the disabled, and that's really bad."
Villagers in Mapperley say the barrier to traffic turns what was a three-mile journey to Heanor into a 14-mile round trip.
A county council spokesman said: "Earlier this month, we replaced the gate that was originally put across the lane with a heavy duty barrier as the previous gate was being repeatedly vandalised.
"In addition to the heavy duty barrier, we have also put in a new motorcycle barrier to ensure that motorbikes do not use the road.
"The new measures are a continuation of the original decision to close the lane to motor vehicles."
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Friday 25 May 2012
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