Warning to Off-Road Vehicle Drivers Ruining Rare Grantham Habitat
The Police are urging the public not to use off-road bikes and 4x4s on Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Grantham.
Flora and fauna, including some of the rarest grassland in England, is being destroyed by people using stretches of the historic Viking Way to mess around on quad and trial bikes.
The main area affected is The Drift, between the A607 at Denton and Saltby Airfield. The Drift is an ancient highway that follows the boundary between Lincolnshire and Leicestershire and also forms part of a footpath known as the Viking Way.
It has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to it being one of the last remaining examples of limestone grassland in the county.
Large sections of the highway are temporarily closed to vehicles for this reason, but despite this, in recent months fences have been pulled down, hedges have been uprooted and barrier logs have been pulled away by off-road bikers and drivers of 4x4 vehicles to gain access. More importantly, large amounts of the rare grassland have also been churned up.
Lincolnshire Police have been working in partnership with Lincolnshire County Council and Natural England to make sure the site is protected and preserved.
PC Karla Bullimore, said: “Aside from the criminal damage to gain access to this site, there is a real risk that this rare habitat will be lost forever if we don’t take action to save it.
“We accept that a lot of the off-road bikers and 4x4 drivers are simply pursuing a hobby they enjoy and they may not even be aware of the damage they are causing.
“We would urge them to find alternative sites and we are warning them that we will take tough action against anyone found in the area.
“Any vehicles that are not fully road worthy, MOTd and insured will be seized and crushed. Even if these regulations are complied with, we may seize the vehicles using Section 59 powers and owners will have to pay to get them back.”
Natural England Lead SSSI Adviser Sadie Hobson said: “The Drift, which is part of King Lud’s Entrenchments, was notified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1968 and re-notified in 1984 as one of the best remaining limestone grasslands in England.
“This grassland is one of the rarest in the country and supports a variety of wildflowers including; Basil Thyme, Field Scabious, Greater Knapweed, Rock Rose, Horse Shoe Vetch, Purple Milk Vetch, Autumn Felwort, Burnett Saxifrage, Birds Foot Trefoil, Salad Burnett and Perforated St John’s Wort to name a few.
“All of these species has been significantly impacted by motorised vehicles and are now restricted to small areas. Restoration of the site is planned for 2013, which includes de-compaction, green hay spreading and scrub removal.”

So, is this currently a BOAT or are people illegally using it?

It was a BOAT but is under TRO ... acc to this bit ..

"Large sections of the highway are temporarily closed to vehicles for this reason, but despite this, in recent months fences have been pulled down, hedges have been uprooted and barrier logs have been pulled away by off-road bikers and drivers of 4x4 vehicles to gain access."

Been trying to check ... wondering about it for future laning ..

Actually ..

It's an ORPA, Other Route with Public Access. As such it doesn't need the whole extra 'paperwork' and stuff that a TRO on a boat needs. The 'public access' can be withdrawn relatively easily, especially as it's passing through an SSSI. By the sounds of it, the route was signposted and blocked lawfully and the blockages removed unlawfully.

Further research shows that on the Leicestershire definitive map online, well, the bit I found that has abstracts from the definitive map, it is NOT a Byway, there is an unclassified road that starts as 'the Drift' but ends within a hundred yards or so (scale is off) but the rest of 'the Drift' is definitely NOT a legal byway.

The map snippet shows I already have it as a possible route on Memory Map, but I've hidden a portion so you can see the markings .. as an ORPA not a Byway ..