A HEREFORD cyclist was barred from disposing his garden waste at the local tip because of new health and safety measures.

Ralf Meiklejohn, 50, who works on the ambulances, cycled some three miles from his home to the site in Rotherwas, Hereford, on Sunday.

He said he was surprised to be turned away given the Government’s message encouraging more people to walk and cycle.

“They stopped me when I approached the entrance and told me no bicycles were allowed on the site,” he said.

“It was practically empty when I went there. I said this is crazy. I just cycled about three miles down through town to dump my stuff.

“They rang somebody and they confirmed that bicycles weren’t allowed but they couldn’t really explain why.

“The crazy thing is once you get into the site you get out of your car and dump your rubbish.

“Everyone was getting out of their car once they got in there.

“It was just a bit jobsworth.”

Mr Meiklejohn made a small sign asking others going to the tip if they could take his waste for him as bikes were not allowed.

“I was showing it to the cars coming in. Then one chap said, ‘Yes, I’ll come round once I’ve been in and collect your rubbish’.

“I said thank you. He went in and when he came out he said he was told by somebody in there that if he collected my waste it would be then classed as trade waste and he would not be allowed to come in with it.

“In the end, I had to go up the road where they couldn’t see me.

“I was holding the sign up and a couple of cars stopped and one chap took my bag of garden waste and another took a sack of ash I had. I managed to offload it all. It was very kind of them.”

A Herefordshire Council spokesperson said they have introduced temporary safety measures to protect staff from coronavirus.

“Whilst these are in place we are currently unable to permit pedestrians and cyclists on site,” a spokesperson said.

“At the gate, staff are asking customers who arrive in motor vehicles to wind up their windows and read simple instructions before entering the recycling centre, creating a barrier against infection. Pedestrians and cyclists cannot offer this mutual protection, so for the time being our operator Severn Waste Services will not permit access.

“When the threat of the global pandemic is reduced and the safety of staff and public assured we will seek to make sure pedestrians and cyclists can once more access their local household recycling centres as they have in the past.”

The council says people should only visit the tip to deposit waste they cannot store safely at home.