Your rights
- On a Public Footpath, you have the right to walk along a defined route. You may walk your dog if it is kept under close control.
- On a Public Bridleway, you have the right to walk or ride a horse or a bicycle along a defined route. Again, you may walk a dog, but should keep it under close control.
- On a Byway Open to All Traffic (BOAT), you may travel on foot, horseback and pedal cycle. A BOAT may also be used by vehicles, but don't expect a tarmaced surface!
You are allowed to:
- Make a journey, with reasonable rest along the way.
- Take a pram, pushchair, wheelchair, but expect to encounter stiles on footpaths
- Take a dog, preferably on a lead or under close control.
- Take a short alternative route around an illegal obstruction.
- Remove an illegal obstacle sufficiently to get past.
Other types of path
A green lane is an unsurfaced track or path, bounded by hedges or walls, and often of some antiquity. The term has no legal meaning, and, if there is a Public Right of Way along such a track, it will usually be classified under one of the above headings.
A permissive path is not a Public Right of Way but the public are allowed to use it, with the permission of the landowner.