County hopes ATV trail will encourage responsible operation
Pat Halpin ATV clubs may soon have the vehicle that can get them more trails in Bruce County.

County council turned to the Grey Bruce Trails Network to come up with a way to meet the demand for safe, legal places to ride ATVs.

Last week the Network unveiled a checklist that clubs will have to complete as they plan, build and operate trails in Bruce county. That framework is being recommended to county council and will go to municipalities for comment.

The new framework doesn't have any maps outlining new ATV trails. It's up to the ATV clubs to propose the where trails go, said Trails Network executive director Ray Gilbert.

Instead it describes rules about consultation with neighbours, trail construction and protecting the environment. Clubs have to meet those conditions before they can get approval for new trails.

"What we have prepared is a model for the development, the management and the monitoring that says 'here is how you do it and how you manage it and make it sustainable'," Gilbert said.

Two years ago Bruce County handed the Trails Network the job of determining where ATVs fit on the growing network of county trails. That move came after months of struggling with the controversy, and on the heels of a consensus to use an ATV trails system similar to the one developed in eastern Ontario.

The goal is to meet the growing demand for safe, legal places to ride ATVs - without damaging the environment or creating conflict with non-motorized trail uses.

Right now the only legal place to ride ATVs in Bruce County is on the county rail trail, but Gilbert said even that trail has limits because of closed bridges in Paisley and a motorized vehicle ban on the Saugeen Rail Trail section.

There's pressure to open new trails in some county forests and on unopened municipal road allowances, Gilbert said.

The county now has a complete list of what ATV clubs have to do before those plans earn approval, Gilbert said.

It includes consulting with neighbours, First Nations, municipalities and any other stakeholders about the trail location; checking for endangered species and environmental conditions like wetlands and sand dunes; and designing the trail to prevent washouts and environmental damage.

There are also requirements for ongoing inspection of the trail for safety hazards and signposting, and training for trail monitors designated to ensure trail users have ATV club memberships and to educate about trail etiquette.

County councillors applauded the proposed rules as a way to encourage responsible ATV riding.

"ATVers have a good spokesperson in Ray," said Warden Milt McIver. "We all differ on what recreation is. For those who chose ATVs, I respect that."

There's still concern about ATV riders who ignore rules, venture onto private property and cause disturbance or damage. Hopes are that with more legal places to ride and more club members setting the standard, that behaviour will diminish.

"We may never be able to stop the yahoos," Gilbert admitted, noting "there are rebels in everything".

ATV clubs have some new trails in mind, but Gilbert said the county isn't ready to become an ATV destination.

There aren't enough trails or staging areas to handle an influx of riders from outside the region, he said.

"We believe we need to develop enough trails for our local riders," Gilbert said. "There are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of ATV riders already in Bruce County. We need to provide some place for our own people before we bring in others."