Huncote: BMX track still closed after two years due to gas

Harry Donald says he hopes the Huncote track reopens soon

A BMX track in Leicestershire has been out of use for more than two years due to a landfill gas problem.

A petition to reopen the track, based at Huncote Leisure Centre, has over 2,000 signatures.

Jan Freakley, chairman of Huncote Hornets, who trained on the track, said it was "devastating" they had been unable to use it since November 2021.

Blaby District Council says it has spent more than £500,000 on a system to reduce methane levels at the site.

The £100,000 track, which was funded by National Lottery and Sport England, hosted the British BMX Championships a few months before it was forced to close.

Casey Daniell said it could cost over £30,000 to get the track back up and running

Harry Donald, from Anstey, is currently world number two and European number one in his age group and used to train there, but has since had to travel to Derby or Birmingham to practice.

The 12-year-old, who started going to Huncote when he was about three, said: "That's when I found my love for BMX. I really like this track."

Mr Freakley said the club was told back in 2021 that the site would be "shut for a couple of weeks", but more two years later, the track was still closed.

Casey Daniell, the club's vice chairman, said there were about 3,000 spectators when the track hosted the British Championships.

"That's the kind of spectacle we can achieve. We're not prepared to let it just disappear and potentially be built on or flattened or got rid of," he said.

"It's heartbreaking to see two years on and we're still in limbo."

A drone image shows the track remains out of use

Blaby District Council reopened the leisure centre building in October 2022, with additional land at the site following suit in August 2023 after landfill gas levels "significantly reduced", leaving just the area with the BMX track closed.

A council spokesperson said: "This section has proved to be more complex, with landfill gas levels fluctuating, meaning it has been much more challenging to reduce the gas levels to a consistent and acceptable range.

"Additional works in this area were undertaken in November and December 2023 and monitoring of their impact is ongoing."

Council leader Terry Richardson apologised for the impact on BMX fans but said "we must protect our residents from harm".

He added: "If landfill gas remains at potentially hazardous levels in an area then we can not reopen that to public use - it simply would not be safe."

Harry Donald is currently world number two and European number one in his age group