Bid to put dogs on leads on North Down Coastal Path gets 'ruff' reaction

Running from the centre of Bangor to Holywood on the outskirts of east Belfast, the 16-mile North Down Coastal Path is a beloved part of life in the area and in good weather draws crowds of people keen to stretch their legs on a scenic part of the coast.

But there’s regular tension between dog-walkers, cyclists, joggers and ordinary pedestrians, all of whom are competing for space on a path that in places becomes so narrow that users have to traverse it in single file.

Part of the route runs along a privately owned road in a wealthy enclave at Craigavad. The seaside Station Road has a public right of way for the Coastal Path, and the local council is considering bringing in new rules would force people to keep their dogs on leads in that area – or get slapped with fines.

But the move has sparked anger from some users of the path, with more than a third of people surveyed by Ards and North Down Council against a mandatory leads command.

According to the council, the rule would mean dogs are “less likely to be involved in attacks or incidents with runners or cyclists” and would be unlikely to foul the area, or stray into large gardens next to the path.

But officials say they wouldn’t have the resources to enforce it much, believe bringing it in would be unpopular, and think it could result in many more areas demanding similar rules.

The road being privately owned may also make things awkward, as each landowner would not only be exempt from the command on their specific patch, but could also permit others to walk dogs without leads on their property.

The local authority has already one very irate resident demand the rule be scrapped before it’s even come in, arguing the council hasn’t shown evidence that it's needed and accusing officials of “prioritising the concerns of a few private landowners over the rights of the wider public”.

The resident, whose name has been kept blank in official council documents, argues that imposing off-lead bans on one part of the route would set a precedent that could see them plastered down its full 16-mile length.

"The North Down Coastal Path is a valued public space where dog walkers play a major role in its usage and community spirit,” he states. “This proposed order unfairly penalises responsible owners for the sake of a small number of private residents.

"Many people rely on this pathway to properly exercise their dogs, and a maximum two-metre lead will be highly restrictive, particularly for those with larger dogs or mobility issues.”

The council is to debate the leads bid this week.

The current Coastal Path opened in 1971 after a heavy-duty construction process lasting several years, massively expanding and tarmacking over existing trails.

Popular with locals and tourists, serious changes to the area are often met with strong resistance – for example, in 2023 a £7m council plan to turn it into a greenway collapsed in the face of massive public objections to the idea.