THE owner of a Valleys moto-cross track is devastated after his plans to continue running it were rejected by councillors last week.

Chris Jones, who ran Green Valley Moto X track on land overlooking Wyllie, has had to close the track after Caerphilly council’s planning committee rejected his plans to retain the land for moto-cross two days a month.

Mr Jones, 30, said he spent hundreds of thousands of pounds creating the bankings on the track, known as Wyllie Track, and was allowed to operate the track 14 days a year. However last year the council asked him to apply for planning permission because of the bankings.

“We thought the track was somewhere for riders to ride safely and legally,” he said.

He said an average of 60 riders would use scrambler motorbikes, quads and side cars and there was a separate supervised children’s track.

He said track days were risk assessed and would have five marshall points and first aiders.

Mr Jones said he has already spent around £17,000 just on legal fees in the last two years.

Lawrence Morris, 54, from Ynysddu, volunteered as a marshall at the track.

He said: “I want to see the track open so I can teach my grandson howto ride safely.”

The proposal was refused on the grounds that it was likely to cause noise disturbance; have a detrimental impact on nearby properties; create visual scarring of the land and that it would aggravate unauthorised use by motorcyclists of the neighbouring land, part of which is a Site of Importance for nature conservation.

Authority was also granted for an enforcement notice to be served for the removal of the tracks and banks.

Mr Jones, who has currently closed the track, said he will have to flatten it if he fails to win an appeal.