WALKERS have been warned a decision to recognise a footpath across a firing range doesn’t mean they can now use the path.
The path which follows the seawall between Caldicot and Rogiet, east of Newport, and crosses the southern boundary of the Severnside Rifle Range has been closed since 2020.
But at a meeting this week Monmouthshire County Councillors ruled the path is a public right of way.
But the county’s rights of way officer has warned that doesn’t yet mean the path is open to the public and said people should still steer clear of what had been the disputed stretch.
Shaun Pritchard said: “The committee did not decide that the public can walk path through the range it simply decided to make an order.
“Only if and when the order is confirmed will the public have the recorded right to use the path. As things stand the path is not a recorded public path and people believing it is may be endangering themselves and others. The public should stay away from the area until the matter is determined.”
Following the committee’s decision there is a 42-day period at the end of which the council can confirm the order.
But if there any objections a decision could have to be made by the Welsh Government’s appeals body Planning and Environment Decisions Wales which could consider further written submissions or hold a public hearing.
The path will only be added to the definitive map of rights of way when the order is confirmed, which is is expected to take several months.
