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72 | AUGUST 2019 4x4
MAJOR VICTORY FOR GREEN
LANE ASSOCIATION AS
WATER BREAK ITS NECK
REOPENS AT LAST
AFTER A SEEMINGLY
ENDLESS period of closure, one
of Wales’ most scenic green lanes is
at last open again. Water Break Its
Neck, near New Radnor in Powys,
was the subject of a long and
tortuous campaign by the Green
Lane Association to save it from
permanent closure – and following
a lengthy and extensive programme
of ground works, the Traffi c
Regulation Order banning motor
Zehicles from using it was fi nally
lifted towards the end of May.
The lane, which stretches north-
south for between fi Ze and six miles
(and links up with Old Hall, another
byway, at its north end to create
a through route of around eightmiles with almost no tarmac), is
largely fi rm-surfaced but has some
sections along its length which have
in the past been prone to rutting.
By and large the lane is now easy to
drive, though some ruts do remain- with the most awkward set being
close to a large drop-off, making it a
scary business to negotiate.
In addition, there are some areas
where users drive on unmarked
grass. These have been signposted
to show the route of the right
of way – which it is of course
imperative to stick to.
While GLASS is rightly
celebrating the lane’s reopening,
the organisation cautions that
over-use would be likely to see the
lane closed again. In particular, you
should avoid it in wet conditions, as
further repairs are still planned and
until these are done it will remain
very sensitive.
These repairs to Water Break
Its Neck follow similar works on
Giants Grave, Black Yatt and Golf
Links, opening up a whole series of
long and beautiful lanes in this part
of Powys. The county’s relationshipwith motor vehicle users is an
excellent example to others, with
positive engagement on both sides- at present, indeed, volunteers
from the Green Lane Association
are helping instal waymarking on its
rights of way, and the county has
stated its aim of classifying Moelfre
City, another cause celebre which
has long been illegally obstructed, as
a public highway.