ATPAG

So, this week we have another ATPAG meeting taking place in Adelaide.

From the draft notes I've seen as to what the meeting is to focus on, it will be interesting to see if anything positive comes from this.

The Australian Centre of Excellence in Risk Assesment (apologies if this is incorrect; close enough to get the overall idea though) has been brought in - at the bequest of those Selfish Few walkers! - it seems to try and "prove" that riding a bike in a park in an authorised/non-cheeky way on certain trails, in a managed format, is somehow far more dangerous than the current situation of riding one on whatever trail one fancies that day. Right...

I am sure that nothing new will arise from this workshop; we know what difficulties are faced by all users in the use of trails and of DENR in allowing such use, having the ACERA folks in doesn't change it - it is just another stalling tactic from the selfish contingent of walkers who still want the parks and trails to themselves. It won't prove or disprove any of the claims of excessive erosion, spread of weeds or destruction of native flora and fauna, because it is about how to analyse risk not what level should be deemed acceptable; that is still up to the DENR. So, just as it has been for the last 10 plus years that this has been dragging on...

My one hope for this meeting is that it shows that the analysis already done by DENR (or DEH as it was) was of a sufficiently high level and that therefore the planning, review and consequent outcomes of the trailplans to date, those that have supported the allowance of bikes in those areas deemed acceptable by DENR, are valid. If this is the case - and I for one see no reason that it should not be - there is no reason for the Minister to not rubber stamp these plans with his approval and allow them to be actioned.

What will happen next will however, be interesting.

On the one hand, SA will lead the country in implenting such practises and go on to be an innovator in such situations. The MTB community can finally breath a sigh of relief and get on with actually enjoying our parks and open spaces without having to glance over our shoulder every time we ride something that is still considered cheeky on a bike, yet perfectly acceptable on foot. Most importantly though, in due course, unauthorised MTB trails will reduce in number (though not all unauthorised trails, as, despite the insistence of those Selfish Few, some unauthorised trails are created by other user groups!!); more people will be able to access our parks and open spaces and consequently more people will take and interest in them and their relevance.

On the other, will court action be taken against the Minister or Department? Just how far are the Selfish Few willing to go?

Only time will tell. Yet with these ongoing delays, manipulations of the processes and the general pig-headedness in accepting that MTBs have just as much right to use trails and can do so with equally as little impact as foot - given the research provided by IMBA into trail construction for ALL users, arguably less! - the Selfish Few are losing that very time that they have to actually work on an agreement of use rather than the continuation of disagreement.