http://streetmap.co.uk/map?X=581865&Y=200760&A=Y&Z=120 refers
Anyone who cycles regularly in mid-Essex is likely to have used the Flambirds Farm track. We used it quite regularly when the WARTY series was in full swing, and it's been used by the CTC for their Sunday runs, the Southend Wheelers, the 40+, and plenty of other casual groups as a great way to hear up towards Maldon SE Essex. I recall first using it in the 1970s and 1980s, and many, many times between returning to cycling in 2006 and the lull which began for me in 2014. I think the last time I used it was in February last year.
I understand from the SE Group of the Essex CTC that the landowner has, some time last year, put up signs that cyclists are no longer welcome, and that people have been challenged by "jobsworths" when they have cycled through. The whole of the track is made of concrete segments, and the section from Hackman's Lane (the road leading south out of Cock Clarks) is used as vehicle access to the Stow Maries World War 1 aerodrome, which is often open to the public and has tea rooms etc. The section at the SW end is a public footpath so, technically, one should not cycle on that, but several decades of precedent having been set, I understand that it is possible to mount a legal challenge to what the farmer/landowner is trying to do - introduce a retrospective cycling ban when the track has been used by cyclists pretty much throughout living memory.
I wondered if anyone on here has been challenged or seen the signs? I understand that CTC have been contacted by people in the SE group and that the possibility of a formal legal challenge to the landowner is being investigated. I wondered if there's anyone on here who has used the track recently, has seen the farmer's signs, or has been challenged when riding through. Mid-Essex people? Is this part of your "domain"?