Rufford ford: Permanent closure plans face criticism

Plans to permanently close a ford in Nottinghamshire have been described as "devastating" by a local business.

Rufford Lane ford was temporarily shut in 2022 due to safety concerns as numbers of people filmed cars driving through the water at high speeds.

While the ford became an internet hit it was also the AA's "number one flood related accident hotspot".

Now the county council has launched a four-week consultation on making the closure permanent.

In October a tractor was videoed forcing its way through the ford - and a following car got stuck

Watching vehicles splash through the ford had for many been part of a visit to Rufford Abbey for years, especially in summer.

But a surge in people filming the cars to post footage online had led to concerns of dangerous driving and aggressive behaviour towards people living nearby.

Resident Moira Fox said: "People were encouraged to go through the water when it wasn't safe.

"There were children at the side and as the cars were coming through they were going ridiculously fast."

Neil Clarke, county council cabinet member for transport and environment, said: "Public safety is the number one priority of the county council and people were just going through far too dangerously and it was becoming a spectacle, people were coming there intentionally just to use the water as a splash spectacle.

"We've had to look at all sorts of options but at the end of the day - apart from building a bridge which would be phenomenally expensive and of course it would no longer be a ford - the best option at the moment we believe to permanently close it because that would keep people safe."

Will Laughton, who runs a neighbouring country club, says access is now far more difficult

The council said other options considered included improved traffic calming methods, a flood reduction scheme, traffic signals and restricting access to only approved vehicles - but all were viewed as being ineffective or too complex to implement.

But the proposal has faced sharp criticism from a local business.

Will Laughton, owner of Rufford Park Golf and Country Club, said: "In certain aspects it's devastating our business because people simply can't get to us as easily as they could.

"The access to us now is by a very difficult junction on the A616 at Wellow."

The ford is currently blocked with both signs and concrete barriers

Mr Laughton said the core issue was the river was allowed to silt up, which meant the water at the ford became deeper.

"I have significant sympathy for the local people who live in the Sawmill cottages but the problem is not with the YouTubers," he said.

"The YouTubers were exploiting something they thought was fun, so you take that away and it will return to what it always was.

"On the other hand there are other calming methods, like to make it a single track - they could easily do that and it wouldn't cost the amount of money the county council are suggesting - but ultimately it is not an expensive issue if it is kept clean."

Comments on the county council's Facebook page were also largely negative.

Ben Scott said: "Embarrassing - bureaucracy at its worst. A right of way that has existed for hundreds of years is closed due to behaviour of a few individuals and the complete ineptitude of our local representatives."

Jenna Ward said: "Absolutely staggering that this is considered a dangerous hazard that needs closing when the state of the roads around the county are far more dangerous."