Colorado officials debate bike-only trails

Colorado trail managers are debating whether some of the state’s busiest shared-use trails should be split by user type instead of remaining open to hikers, runners and mountain bikers at the same time, according to a May 14 report by The Colorado Springs Gazette. The ideas under discussion include bike-only or hiker-only designations, directional rules and time-based separation on crowded stretches, the newspaper reported. Colorado Springs’ own trail guidance still says city trails are shared-use and tells cyclists to yield to pedestrians, while some Front Range managers already run designated-use systems. Jefferson County’s open-space network includes several examples of bike-only trail segments and directional riding rules, giving local officials a working model as the debate broadens. ### Which agencies are already using bike-only or split-use rules? Jefferson County Parks & Open Space says most of its 275-plus miles of trail remain multi-use, but it designates some trails for a single visitor group to address safety, reduce conflict, improve visitor experience or respond to terrain. The county says its system spans more than 58,000 acres and 27 parks. Lair o’ the Bear Park now includes Rutabaga Ride, a 3.5-mile bike-only, directional trail that officially opened on May 25, 2023, Jefferson County says. (gazette.com) The county says the trail was first proposed in 2018 by the Colorado Mountain Biking Association as an alternative route to help separate visitors. White Ranch Park and Matthews/Winters Park also have bike-only segments that came out of an earlier designated-use pilot. (jeffco.us) Jefferson County says a 0.9-mile stretch of Longhorn Trail at White Ranch is bike-only and one-way, while a 0.8-mile segment of Dakota Ridge South Trail at Matthews/Winters is designated for mountain bikes only. ### What did the earlier Jeffco pilot show? Jefferson County said in a 2018 announcement that it launched a one-year pilot to test designated-use trails and collect data, survey visitors and measure changes in incidents and trail conditions. (jeffco.us) The county said the program would help inform how it manages designated-use and multi-use trails. Jefferson County’s designated-use page says the pilot later produced about 98% compliance and that more than 80% of surveyed users were satisfied or in favor of the designation. (jeffco.us) The county says those results led it to keep the designations in place. ### How do Colorado Springs trails work now? Colorado Springs says on its trails page that city trails are shared-use and that visitors may encounter bicyclists, hikers, runners, equestrians and dog walkers. (jeffco.us) The city’s etiquette guidance says pedestrians have the right of way over bikes and runners, uphill traffic has the right of way, and the trail speed limit is 20 miles per hour. The city’s current guidance shows that any move toward bike-only or hiker-only designations would mark a change from the existing default on most Colorado Springs trails. (jeffco.us) The Gazette reported that local officials and stakeholders discussed possible trials for some of the busiest corridors this summer. ### What kinds of trail separation are being discussed? The Gazette reported that stakeholders discussed several options beyond a simple bike-only designation. (coloradosprings.gov) Those options included assigning different directions of travel to different users, setting use by time of day and physically separating users in the busiest sections. Apex Park in Jefferson County already uses a more complex version of that approach. Jeffco says bicyclists there must ride one direction only — downhill and eastbound — on even-numbered calendar dates on all trails, while trail use also changes by visitor type on even and odd dates. ### Why is this debate surfacing now? The Gazette framed the issue around crowding and conflict on high-traffic trails where hikers and mountain bikers are competing for space. (gazette.com) Jefferson County’s trail policy similarly says designated-use trails can be used to address safety and visitor conflict. Colorado’s broader trail systems are also large enough that managers have multiple tools to test. (jeffco.us) Jefferson County says it now manages 275-plus miles of trail, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s COTREX map covers more than 39,000 miles of recreational trails statewide. ### What happens next this summer? The Gazette reported on May 14 that local agencies will consider potential trials this summer on some of the busiest trails. (gazette.com) Colorado Springs has not yet changed its public trail guidance, which still describes the city network as shared-use. Jefferson County’s existing designated-use pages give Colorado officials concrete examples to point to as they weigh next steps, including Rutabaga Ride at Lair o’ the Bear, Longhorn Trail at White Ranch and Dakota Ridge South at Matthews/Winters. (jeffco.us) Any Colorado Springs or regional pilot would add to a debate that is already moving from etiquette rules toward formal trail design. (jeffco.us) (gazette.com)