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Tykeswater/Woodhall (& Hertfordshire Way) issues
This page was updated end July 20086

 Woodhall Lane
Tykeswater Lane
 Hertfordshire Way: Elstree 50
Woodhall Lane

Note at September 2009. A diversion/stoppingup/creation scheme is being consulted on. Contact us, preferably by9th September if you have comment or query.
 
Two photos below are of the greenway c 2001, when BADFA was occasionally clearing this very attractive path. The landowner cleared it occasionally too.

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Woodhall Lane has been impassable for years, an order has been made to record it on the official map, that is proceeding, currently with some negotiations to speed up the process. Though 'speed' is not a word that can be properly applied to the process so far.
A route, on almost the same line, is available on foot (for the agile). Most of it is called footpath Elstree 49 and forms a part of the Hertfordshire Way through to Shenley.  We have had much cause for complaint on this route, some years back a County officer actually supported the landowner's obstruction of the path and inappropriate structures and notices have subsequently been authorised or tolerated. Recently, on being told it was impassable County Hall initially declined to get it cleared on the grounds that a bit further on was not on the definitive map yet. Commendably they backed off from that position quickly when two user groups took it up.

17 August 2007  Stile in place of the crossed wood and barbed wire. Needless to say the stile is very far indeed from BS5709 or County standards. Kissing gate coming.
The stile to the right of the locked gate has been removed, but there is some corrugated iron sheeting and some loose barbed wire on the way. The Width issue turns out to have been someone thinking that 4 Metres = 12 feet.
 

6 July 2007  HCC is believed to have had a site meeting with current landholder. We think it would have been more efficient use of officer time if we had been authorised to deal with the obstructions, or even if she just removed them herself. We have not yet checked to see if the path is now clear.


2 July 2007  BADFA notified HCC of the obstructions.

1 July 2007  New locked gate found to have been put up, and further on a wood and barbed wire fence across the path.


The muddy patch is now a little lake.


The two strands of barbed wire right across may not be clear in the picture.

In July 2006 BADFA, with County's approval, modified a stile near Theobald Street to allow the Festival walkers to use it more conveniently by making the top cross-bar a lift-up one. It has since been converted back by someone by removing the lifting bar, nailing-up an even higher top board and tying up with farm twine (see photo).

The stile near Theobald Street in October 2006

County promised in July 2006 that they would get a proper kissing-gate here. BADFA is pressing for that to happen.
 26 October 2006  County inform us that it has been in this condition for some years. We accept it has been terrible for some years but it is much worse now than it was for instance in 1999. And what has its age got to do with the need to sort it out? County seem unwilling to act until any Woodhall Lane proposals are taken forward.

 


Tykeswater Lane  

Legal note
The County Council (HCC) has believed the path to be a public Byway since around 1993 or earlier.
# It is HCC's legal duty, under S130 of Highways Act 1980 and others, to keep such public paths clear for use.
# This Byway has been on the official list/map since December 2005. Being on that map makes it conclusively a Byway in law. There is no legal way that HCC can authorise a kissing gate across such a path. Where such a gate remains, and whether purporting to be authorised or not, it is an obstruction of the highway and it is HCC's legal duty to get it removed.
 


An unlawful kissing gate still in place on Tykeswater Lane during the Bushey Festival Walk, July 2006


The bridge over the Woodhall Brook is now built and seems very good.

February 22nd 2007.
Our Access Officer at County Hall informed us this week that all the (unlawful) structures have now been removed. We haven't yet verified that but have no reason to doubt it.
We are pleased that the new officer for Aldenham, Dawn Grocock, is making far more progress than her many predecessors, but it is still painfully slow. After all BADFA offered a year or so ago to remove all these unlawful structures free of charge and forthwith. So we are not putting the flags out, and don't intend to. The eastern end is not yet sorted out (though it does look as though our officer is actually tackling it) and the linking path on the Hertfordshire Way is totally blocked, requiring a diversion over a non-definitive path and over a terrible stile and across a deep slippery ditch. Of course County has known about all this for years.


October 2006. The path from Watling Street near Butterfly Lane to Theobald Street (leading on to Shenley) is currently one that desperately needs to be sorted out. From Theobald Street for some 100 metres south-westerly towards Watling Street this path, a combined horse, cycle and foot route is impassable without getting wet, or scratched, or one's clothes damaged; or all three. HCC is dithering around about clearing the path despite having had over ten years to think about it. This dithering forces an alternative route to be used which is much less safe, see safety, below.

22 November 2006 'Forthwith' doesn't seem to have happened yet.

26 October 2006  HCC tell us the structures are to be removed 'forthwith'. Watch this space.
26 October 2006  HCC now intend to clear a narrow strip on the north side of the path near Theobald Street to "explore the necessity for further works".  We welcome this as progress. They do not plan, however, to open out the whole of the end of this path, seemingly having grave concerns that a motorbike or perhaps some larger vehicle might shoot out onto Theobald street and cause an accident. No response has yet come to our request for a bridge over the Woodhall brook, so these dangerous motor vehicles will have driven through the deep waters of the Tykeswater, or the steep sides and shallow waters of the Woodhall Brook. We have a tough breed of hooligan in Hertfordshire.

HCC has also purported to authorise several structures over the years, but they have no legal power to do so on this class of path, there were about six structures (stiles and Kissing Gates) by the start of 2006. Earlier this year HCC refused to remove them, more recently they refused BADFA's offer to remove
them for them. They have now said they plan to remove them, but we have no idea when.

 
Hertfordshire Way: Elstree 50
Safety
Quite seperate from Tykeswater Lane, but relevant because of the lane being impassable, is a footpath (Elstree 50) which has to be used from the Tykeswater stream to Theobald street. It forms part of the Hertfordshire Way (www.fhw.org.uk) It has a dangerous crossing place on Theobald Street. It is significantly more dangerous than the crossing that could be used if the main path were cleared properly. One has about three seconds to cross beyond the road centre from the moment a vehicle approaching from the south becomes visible round the blind corner to the moment when it is upon one.
For the Festival Walk in 2006 we were not prepared to take a large group across the road at this point and so we cleared a standing area and part of a route down the field to the cottages, and we all crossed, relatively safely, there. BADFA's trustees took the risk of being sued for trespass, and of injury on the rough ground which was not part of the official path.
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