Access to Southlands has been restricted to walkers only in a bid to tackle illegal dumping.

The two entrance gates to the beauty spot on South Road have been locked to prevent vehicles driving into Southlands and new signs have been erected to deter Islanders dumping trash.

“The signs have been erected to prevent the dumping of trash, including large items such as mattresses and old appliances, which has been a problem in this area,” a spokeswoman for the Parks Department said.

“Members of the public are encouraged to make use of the park between sunrise and sunset, but the park is closed to vehicular traffic. There is pedestrian access only.”

Last month the Bermuda Environmental and Sustainability Taskforce lamented the lack of progress in making Southlands a national park.

The group said it was “disheartened” that there was no mention of Southlands in the Throne Speech, and chairman Stuart Hayward added it was difficult to understand why there had been such a long delay in providing Southlands with national park status.