TIMBERSCOMBE-based racehorse trainer Alan Jones has been given six months to remove a gallop from his land after fears were raised about the safety of people using a nearby bridleway and footpath.

Exmoor National Park Authority's planning committee was told the gallop had been built without permission and ran both alongside a bridleway between Waydown Cross and Elscombe Lane and over the route of a footpath at Elscombe Lane.

West Somerset and Exmoor Bridleways Association, the British Horse Association and Timberscombe Parish Council had all raised concerns about the application.

They feared riders and walkers using the bridleway and footpath could be injured if a horse using the gallop unseated its rider and ran loose, while horses using the bridleway could also be spooked by the sound of other equines galloping past.

Somerset County Council's highways authority had also objected to Mr Jones' bid to retain the existing gallop and to extend it by a further 107 metres.

Highways chiefs felt the impact on the bridleway was exacerbated by the fact the gallop was screened by a hedge, meaning passing horses and ponies could bolt if they suddenly heard a galloping racehorse, but were unable to see it.

The council believed signs warning of the gallop would not be sufficient to alleviate safety concerns and said the current lack of any recorded accidents at the site did not mean one could not happen in the future.

Planning committee members were told Mr Jones had offered to put up warning signs and had already improved visibility at the point where the gallop crossed the footpath.

Planning officers felt the gallop itself, which was 3.5 metres wide with a woodchip covering, did not have an unacceptable adverse impact on the surrounding countryside.

But when they met last Tuesday, committee members disagreed and objected to the use of white plastic running rails that had been installed alongside the gallop.

The committee felt the rails had an unacceptable impact on the countryside and agreed that the gallop posed an unacceptable safety risk to people using both the bridleway and footpath.

In refusing permission for the gallop, they also authorised officers to begin formal enforcement action to ensure the gallop was removed within six months and the land restored to its original state.