Public Rights of Way

Somerset is a wonderful county full of contrast and there is no better way to absorb its beauty, variety and history than through the Public Rights of Way network. The county has over 9000 rights of way totalling 3808 miles (6129 km). The extensive path network is varied ranging from long distance routes such as the South West Coast Path and the River Parrett Trail, to a number of promoted circular routes and local country paths.

The majority of the public rights of way network in Somerset is made up of public footpaths, over which the public only have a right on foot.  There are also many public bridleways over which you can walk, ride a horse and also cycle (as long as you give way to other walkers and horse riders).  There are a lesser number of restricted byways and a handful of byways open to all traffic.  Restricted byways allow walkers, horse riders, cyclists and non-mechanically propelled vehicles (eg: horse and cart), whereas byways open to all traffic allow all users including motorised traffic.

We are responsible for protecting and asserting your rights to use the network and for keeping the legal record of public rights of way up-to-date. We have also published a Rights of Way Improvement Plan for the county and are responsible for the recruiting for, and servicing of, the Somerset Local Access Forum.

A specialist team deals exclusively with these rights of way issues, which are delivered in partnership with the Exmoor National Park Authority and the District/ Borough Councils.

For more information about the services that we provide and how you can get involved please follow the links to our other pages which can be found under Council Activities.

The England Coast Path - Somerset
To find out about how Somerset County Council's Rights of Way Team are working with Natural England to implement the Somerset stretch of the England Coast Path please refer to the 'The England Coast Path - Somerset' leaflet in the Information and resources section.