Bobbies on the peat

MOORLAND action . . . Councillor Roughley with Sgt Johnson and some of the police off-road bike team

Police bike unit on the trail of rogue scramblers

A POLICE off-road bike unit is on the trail of rogue scramblers who ride their machines over moorland, damaging vital wildlife habitat.

The scramblers are becoming a growing menace — particularly during school holidays.

And Alan Roughley, ward councillor for Saddleworth North, is calling for the bikes of culprits to be confiscated and sent to the crusher.

Councillor Roughley met Sgt Craig Johnson of the GMP’s Saddleworth and Lees township and key riders from the force’s off-road unit to discuss the problem.

Councillor Roughley said: “Riding a scrambler bike over bumps takes real skill and must be a great deal of fun. But they can’t go just where they please.

“Saddleworth’s moors are very fragile, with the highest European level of protection for rare bird life, heather moors, bogs and mosses.

“There are scrambler tracks criss-crossing the moors all over the place, causing considerable damage.

“At a time when heather is being replanted by helicopter to stop the peat being washed away forever, bikers should not complain if they get caught, fined heavily. I would also like to see their bikes confiscated for crushing.”

The councillor said moorland areas near Windy Hill, Stanedge and Blackstone Edge are favourite spots for the scramblers — which is often a teenagers’ first introduction to off-roading.

After meeting the officer, he added: “This special police unit really know what they are doing — I’d pity any scramble biker who thinks he could race away from them.”

Sgt. Johnson added: “The off-road team will be keeping a special watch on the moors. We are very conscious of the fragility and special place moorland life has in the community.”

Mobile police units will also be keeping watch on the A640 from Denshaw to Kirklees after Councillor Roughley claimed bikers with racing-style machines were using it as an extension to the TT circuit on the Isle of Man.