Under Section 17 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, Local Authorities are required to draw up a plan for a Core Path network. The purpose of this plan is to provide a protected network of paths that can help the public move across the landscape.

Fife Council adopted its Core Paths Plan in 2012 following a Scottish Government Local Inquiry.

Core Paths can be any type of path, from public roads and street-lit cycle-ways to muddy, overgrown tracks. Not all core paths in Fife are signposted, maintained or suitable for all users.

More information on Fife's Core Paths Plan & Cycle Route Network is available from our interactive map.

Cautionary and information lines on the map denoting issues with Core Paths do not include overgrown routes, which can be widespread in summer.

For further details on active travel projects, please visit our Active Travel page.

Public Rights of Way

A Right of Way is created through common law and comes into being if it meets the following four criteria:

• It must join two public places.
• It follows a more or less defined route.
• It has been used openly and peaceably by the public as a matter of right.
• It has been used without substantial interruption for at least twenty years.

Rights of Way do not need to be recorded, and establishing whether a route is a Right of Way is not straightforward. The most comprehensive records of Rights of Way are held by the Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society (ScotWays).

We are responsible for protecting Public Rights of Way to keep them open and free from obstruction. We work closely with ScotWays, who promote outdoor public access and we:

• deal with enquiries and offer advice and information on rights of way and access matters
• hold information about recorded rights of ways

If you would like to know more about the recorded Rights of Way in Fife, contact Fife Coast and Countryside Trust.