HERITAGE enthusiasts are calling for an access route to a landfill site to be closed because it is allowing tearaway bikers to get onto one of the borough's beauty spots.

The road to Billinge Hill was laid down 20 years to give tipping trucks access to a landfill site. Tipping has now finished at the Billinge Hill Quarry and, according to local heritage campaigners, there is a long-standing agreement with St Helens Council that the road should be removed.

Billinge History/Heritage want the access route off Rainford Road, Billinge to be blocked because it allows access for scrambler bikes onto the Green Belt land which, they say, "cause untold damage to paths and natural habitat".

Such is the strength of community concern, more than 100 people attended a recent Heritage Society's meeting.

The Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority need access to the site in case of any environmental problems in the future, so it is due to apply to St Helens Council for the lease on the half-mile road to be extended by 30 years.

A spokesperson for Billinge History/Heritage Society said: "We want the council to stand by the original agreement. There are plenty of other access points through farms in case of an emergency.

"Billinge Hill will soon be restored and with more than 20 acres of land will be a prime landscape site for Lancashire. But if you can drive onto it on scrambler bikes and big jeeps it will be a waste of time."

The MWDA confirmed landfilling is complete and capping, restoration and landscaping works on the site are due for completion imminently so the site can be handed back to its owners, the John Eddleston Charity and the Woodland Trust.

Access

Their spokesperson said: "MWDA hopes to submit a planning application in the near future to extend the use of the current purpose-built access road into this site as the only alternative access is through a very narrow residential street.

"MWDA intends to discuss these issues with the local farmer and landowner. Following these negotiations the authority will consult with local residents at a prior to submitting any application".