OFF road cyclists are hopeful that their dirt track in a Halesowen coppice will be saved from the threat of bulldozers.

A complaint about noise and disturbance at the facility on the edge of the Squirrels estate sparked moves by Dudley Council to flatten the 100 or more jumps because it did not have planning permission.

But a Save Halesowen Trails Facebook campaign and support from ward councillors and election candidate Jeff Hill brought a stay of execution.

The users were told they would either have to apply for planning permission or prove it had existed in its current form for 10 years or more.

Hayley Green and Cradley South councillor Ken Turner said he could prove the trails had existed for more than 10 years having dealt with an issue that arose there 13 years ago.

Chris Brown, aged 29, a passionate rider, builder and maintainer of the jumps, said they were hoping Cllr Turner could help.

He said: “There are still a lot of things that can happen but we are hopeful that we are making steps in the right direction and are keeping our fingers crossed.”

Cllr Turner said he was “confident” the issue would be resolved to the satisfaction of everyone, including the complainant.

Dudley council’s strategic director for economy, environment and housing, John Millar said: “As a community council we are more than happy to meet with the group to discuss how they need to move this forward.”