A BID to widen a footpath so a landowner could drive his vehicle to his property has been rejected by planners.

The path leading to 15, Greenway Road, Cinderford, was laid by the Forest Council, and the landowner wanted easier access to outbuildings and a garage that still sit on the site of his parents’ now demolished house.

But his scheme was rejected after planners ruled that the path ran through a key wildlife site with lowland acid grassland that was a priority habitat.

Its widening from 1m to 2.5m for vehicle use could also make it unsafe for pedestrians, they said.

The site owner has a right of pedestrian and vehicular access across the land off Greenway Road, it was claimed.

But a report to planners said it had become “difficult to navigate” and the owner didn’t want to use 4x4s to reach the site.

A neighbour who objected to the scheme to widen the track said: “The path is impossible to navigate (for vehicles), and I have not seen any vehicle even attempt this for at least eight years.

“The proposed access is vehicle-width only.

“Pedestrian users to and from 15 or 15a, Greenway Road, will effectively be forced off the path and into nettles, thistles and overgrown land.”

In a separate application, Forest planners also refused to approve a certificate of lawful development for the creation of a new driveway at Old Farm in Barrel Lane, Longhope.

They ruled that it would require extensive excavation that would require full planning permission.