Trail fight heats up over all-terrain vehicles

A group building a woods trail across the country says it wants to keep working with its provincial counterpart, even though they have come to a fork in the road over the use of motorized vehicles on trails.

The national Trans Canada Trail Foundation ended its financial relationship with the New Brunswick Trail Council on March 31.

• FROM APRIL 3, 2006: Trail groups split on all-terrain vehicle use

The national group wants to include groups representing all-terrain-vehicle riders in its bid to finish 900 km of trails throughout New Brunswick. The provincial group is dead-set against this, claiming that the forest trails must be reserved for hikers, cyclists, cross-country skiers and other non-motorized users.

But Trans Canada Trail spokesman Jacques Nadeau says the provincial group is being unrealistic. He says the NB Trail Council is welcome to sit at the table respresenting non-motorized users, but it's impossible to exclude ATV riders when so much money is needed to complete the trail.

"We're not building ATV trails, we're not promoting ATV activity on the Trans Canada Trail," he said.

Nadeau says trails need to be developed in remote, forested areas, where hikers and cyclists rarely go. Each kilometre of trail costs $50,000 to build, and that means the more people at the table willing to donate money, the quicker the trail will be finished.

Nadeau's group wants to meet with everyone interested in building a province-wide trail system, no matter how they will travel on it.

"To sit at the table to see how we could respect each others' trails and see where we could co-operate. We hope that the New Brunswick Trail Council will continue to represent the interests of the non-motorized users."

Nadeau says even if ATVs and snowmobiles are allowed to use remote trails, it would have little effect on urban areas.

"We're not talking here about allowing ATVs or promoting ATV use in the city of Fredericton, Saint John, Edmundston and Moncton, Dieppe. I mean, they have bylaws. They control the motorized activities."

Nadeau says his group would also include municipalities and the province as partners in completing the trail system in New Brunswick.

But David Peterson, past president of the New Brunswick Trail Council, says there's no convincing him that allowing ATVs on backwoods trails is a good idea. He also questions whether the national organization is misleading people in its fundraising.

"We are asking Heritage Canada to simply review the agreement that they have with the Trans Canada Trail Foundation to be sure that it is acceptable for funds designed for a walking and cycling trail to be spent on an ATV trail," he said.