The footpath along the old railway, seen from the Willows Crossing end. Photo: Jim Penfold

The footpath along the old railway, seen from the Willows Crossing end. Photo: Jim Penfold

Walkers will be able to use a former railway line after victory in a seven-year fight.

The route, in the Buckinghamshire village of Bourne End, will become a public footpath, thanks to the perseverance of a residents’ group. The original application was rejected by the council, but an inspector ruled the 360m path should be recorded as a right of way.

Mark Yates, who chaired a public inquiry, ruled there was evidence the path had been used by walkers for at least 20 years without being stopped or asking permission – the deciding criterion for status as a right of way.

Bourne End Residents’ Association provided evidence from 153 people in support of the application, saying the route had been used between 1982 and 2002. Landowner Charles Pitcher challenged this. Mr Pitcher, of Lude Farm, Penn, said fences had been put up, making it clear he did not consider it a public footpath.

However, Mr Yates said he was not convinced that the fence was there during the relevant period, or that it kept people out.

The residents’ association, led by Jim Penfold, was supported by the Ramblers and the Open Spaces Society.

Mr Penfold said: “We are delighted to have won this vital path which, when joined to other dedicated footpaths, links the two villages of Bourne End and Wooburn, enabling people to walk safely between them, away from the roads.

“We are especially grateful to the Ramblers’ Association for its invaluable legal and technical advice on claiming paths, and to the Open Spaces Society for its support.”

Kate Ashbrook, general secretary of the OSS, said: “We congratulate the Bourne End Residents’ Association on their persistence. Their application for the path was rejected by Buckinghamshire County Council and they had to appeal to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to direct the council to make the legal order.

“This was then opposed so there was a public inquiry. The council remained neutral so the residents had to lead the case. It took seven years to win this path.”

The track bed runs from Willows Crossing to Cores End Road in Bourne End, near Beaconsfield. There is an existing public footpath alongside the dismantled railway to the East.