Shropshire motocross scrapped as planning battle lost
A man who created his own motocross track in Shropshire has spoken of his disappointment at losing a planning battle that means he will have to flatten the course.
Gareth Davies, 45, from Villa Farm in Rodington, built the track seven years ago without planning permission.
Telford & Wrekin Council rejected a formal application for planning permission in 2018 and Mr Davies has now lost an appeal against the ruling – meaning he has until September 17 to remove the track.
Mr Davies said he was hugely disappointed at the decision, and said the situation had left him out of pocket to the tune of up to £100,000.
He said that the private track, which was for him and his friends, had operated for five years without complaint.
He has also voiced concern at a lack of facilities for youngsters leading to illegal use of bikes on the roads.
He said: “I had a private motocross track, my own private track, it was not a commercial business, and it has been there about seven years.
“For five years there were no problems, no complaints, and then a new member of the community who had moved in to the village complained and that brought the planners down to me.”
Mr Davies said he initially thought planning officers were supportive of the idea, but the application was ultimately recommended for refusal and rejected.
He appealed against the decision but lost.
Useless
Mr Davies said he had now been left with a useless piece of land.
He said: “I have a completely pointless piece of land.
“Five and a half acres I cannot do anything with. It was a flood plain and it has not been farmed since the mid 1990s.
“I am left with a useless piece of land and a massive bill.
“I am just really disappointed, it was not doing any harm to anyone and we had no complaints for five years.
“It was just a bit of fun for me and my mates. We always kept it to 15 riders, me, my mates and their sons and daughters, from 10am until 2pm on Saturdays in the summer months, weather permitting.
“Obviously my mates are gutted too. It was a nice social event on a Saturday where they would come round, ride their bikes and after we would go for a meal at local pub.”
He added: “If everyone shared the opinion of the complainant’s then there wouldn’t be any Isle of Man TT race, there would not be any Formula One.”
Mr Davies said he also has serious concerns about youngsters who have no access to tracks taking their bikes out onto the streets instead.
He said: “If there are no facilities for people to ride bikes they just end up riding them on the streets. I went to Shrewsbury the other day and saw two lads riding a motocross bike down the street with no helmets. There are huge problems in cities around the country with people just riding on the streets because they haven’t got anywhere else to go. If there are no facilities the sport will just die.
“It is also a way of keeping people off the street and in proper facilities. It is better to have something controlled, albeit with a bit of noise for a limited period rather than just people riding around doing what they want causing a nuisance and being a serious threat to theirs and others safety.”
Mr Davies said the sport also needs support to thrive.
He said: “The sport needs to be nurtured. It should be embraced. At the end of the day England was the founder of motocross and it should not just be frowned upon because it generates noise – everyone has to live in society. The majority of the village supported the application – more people than were against it – yet it still gets squashed because of a minority.”
Telford & Wrekin Council confirmed its enforcement notice had been upheld and that the land would have to be reinstated.
A spokesman for the council said: “The enforcement notice upheld on July 17.
“The enforcement notice came into effect on that date, and required motorcycle racing to cease within seven days and the track to be physically removed and the land returned to its previous condition within two months –by September 17.”
