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Dorchester Bike Park has launched a website and a survey on its plan for a pump track and dirt jumps at Castle Park. The survey closes on Sunday 22 November.
The volunteer-led group behind the project launched dorchesterbikepark.org.uk and says it is a landing page for now, with more to come. Its survey asks local people how they use the Castle Park play area and how they feel about the plan, and the answers go straight into the proposal the group will put to Dorchester Town Council. It takes three to five minutes: take the survey.
Castle Park was once a popular spot for local riders, the group says, with a BMX dirt track and a half-pipe where many young people first rode BMX and mountain bikes. The old dirt track at the top of the play area has since fallen into disrepair, and the group says it is now only suitable for the most basic use.
What is planned
The plan has three parts:
- A tarmac pump track of about 180 metres, for everyone from balance bikes and scooters to skateboards, BMX, mountain bikes and adaptive equipment.
- Two dirt jump lines of around 75 metres each.
- A skills line of about 100 metres, with rollers, small jumps, drop-ins and rock features.
The group says the layout and sizes are a suggestion at this stage. For a sense of scale, it points to the jump lines at Beach Park Pump Track and Jumps near Basingstoke, which are the length it hopes to build, and the pump track at Cadishead All-Wheeled Sports Facility in Salford, which is a similar size.
On the site plan, the jump and skills lines run down from a start platform at the north end of the field, with the pump track alongside them and a half-size five-a-side pitch below. The survey says the changes would mean modifying the current football facilities. The group says the nearest tarmac pump track to Dorchester is about 45 minutes' drive away.
How it got here
The project began as the Castle Park BMX Trail Rejuvenation Project, a group of local parents and BMX and mountain bike riders. Its first proposal went to the town council in February 2022, and a revised one in October 2022 planned two dirt pump tracks, including a smaller one for children aged 4 to 8. In November 2022 the council's Management Committee resolved to support a BMX trail at Castle Park and to consider funding help from its play area reserve, if needed. The petition opened in July 2023 and has since passed 1,800 signatures.
The survey says the park would be paid for through fundraising led by the group. The website lists British Cycling as a supporter, and the project's concept artwork also names Dorchester Transport Action Group, Mud Sweat n Gears, Lyons Landscapes and SVEN. No funding package or planning application has been announced yet.
What happens next
Once the survey closes, the group will put its proposal to Dorchester Town Council. In September it said it hoped to get the project on the agenda for the council meeting on 30 November; the website does not give a date. The group is asking riders to:
- Take the survey by Sunday 22 November.
- Sign the petition.
- Follow the project on Instagram and in its Facebook group, or email dorchesterbikepark@gmail.com to help.
Take the Dorchester Bike Park survey
Concept images and site plans courtesy of the Dorchester Bike Park Community Project. The images are illustrations of the proposal, not photos of the site.