‘ILLEGAL’ off-road bikers are regularly traveling from Bristol and Birmingham to the Gwent valleys as they don’t fear police enforcement, it has been claimed. 

As many as 50 bikers can gather at Henllys, Cwmbran, on Sunday mornings, according to one mountain biker who says he regularly uses the track, while it is also claimed residents are too afraid to report bikers to the police. 

David Thomas, who takes his mountain bike out every Sunday and is also a councillor representing the Llantarnam ward on Torfaen County Borough Council, said groups of off-roaders usually meet between 8.30am and 9am every Sunday. 

“I go out on my mountain bike, up Henllys, every Sunday morning and at the top of the mountain there is a very simple green gate for these off-roaders to open,” he said. “There are between 20 and 50 motorbikers there every single week and I’ve not seen one operation up there, at all, in the last year to stop these bikes from going up there. Unless it’s an invisible one, I don’t see it. 

“We are having bikes now come from as far as Bristol because they know how easy it is to get up there.” 

The Independent Group councillor made his comment as a council scrutiny committee discussed a report assessing the performance local public services. 

He said he felt more attention should be paid in the report to the issue of illegal off roading and grass fires and said those concerns are also shared by other councillors, saying: “I don’t feel this operation is being pushed as much as this report is making out.” 

Cllr Janet Jones, independent member for Blaenavon, said she shared Cllr Thomas’ concerns and it was also an issue in her ward.

“They come from Bristol and Birmingham,” she said. “Residents are not prepared to give information as they fear retaliation. This is destroying our landscape.” 

She asked if there could be “designated rangers” to patrol the areas. 

Andrew Osborne, the council officer responsible for the environment, said it relies on information and “intelligence” from the community for the police to take action. 

He told Cllr Thomas: “Along with other members, whatever you can do, to assist us to put pressure on the police to be at these places where we know there’s bikers on the weekend, then we welcome it.” 

The meeting was also told the council works with other local authorities as well as the police and fire and rescue service to address grass fires as part of a South East Wales Resilient Uplands project. 

But Mr Osborne said off roading has been a difficult issue to tackle.

He said: “We continue to be lobbied by groups, and members, across Torfaen about the problem of off roading, which I agree still exists, and we’ve been trying to get to grips with it for the last 20 years.

“We’re heavily reliant on the police and we are committed to work in partnership with them to do all we can. It’s being pushed all the time as far as the council is concerned.” 

Off roading is illegal on Welsh Government owned forestry, while a 2006 change in the law denied vehicles the automatic use of rights of way where a historic use had been established such as use by a horse and cart. 

Following the meeting Chief Inspector Aled George, of Gwent Police, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service it has run Operation Harley, in response to concerns at illegal off roading, across the county since 2020. 

This involves officers working with partner agencies and conducting regular patrols and also using drones and specialist vehicles to identify offenders and seize vehicles. 

The Chief Inspector said: “It’s important people know of the consequences and that we’ll seize vehicles when necessary. But the operation isn’t just about taking these vehicles away from those who ride them irresponsibly. 

 “It’s also about discouraging people from doing it in the first place, making it less socially acceptable and encouraging communities to share intelligence when these vehicles are being used and who are using them. By doing so, we protect our land and wildlife, and make our roads safer.”