Eastern Trail Special Issues and Topics

SHARING THE CORRIDOR?:  
ALL TERRAIN VEHICLES (ATVs) - DESTRUCTIVE MENACE OR POSSIBLE TRAIL PARTNERS?

Recently in Maine there has been a very loud and public debate on the role and impact of All-Terrain Vehicles, or ATVs, on trails like the Eastern Trail, and on all public and private land.

Is this a huge problem for the Eastern Trail?  Already there have been numerous reports of ATVs being driven on the Eastern Trail corridor, though they are not legally allowed anywhere on the utility easement-controlled corridor. And there are numerous reports of extensive damage caused by ATVs.

NEWS OCTOBER 2003 - Gov. John Baldacci's 15-member ATV Task Force released its initial recommendations on October 6th, and announced it will hold four public forums this month in Presque Isle, Auburn, Bangor and Sanford to hear comments from the public.  The southern Maine forum was held October 30, 2003 in Sanford. 

Click here to read more details on the Task Force's four goals and 46 recommendations.

The full recommendations are available on the ATV Task Force's website. 

UPDATE:  The final report of the Governor's ATV Task Force was delivered in December 2003 - click here to view a copy (a 47-page PDF file)

There have already been a lot of news articles on this subject related to southern Maine and the Eastern Trail corridor.  Check any of these articles:

• ATVs tear up trails in Saco (Biddeford-Saco Journal Tribune, 1/31/2002)

• Unwelcome at any speed? Irresponsible ATV riders create hostile climate for all operators (Lead Editorial Reprinted from the Journal Tribune, March 29, 2002)

• ATV club keeping square with landowners (Maine Sunday Telegram, April 14, 2002)

• Happy trails? Not with nuisance ATV riders (Maine Sunday Telegram, December 11, 2002)

• The ATV Menace: Rogue riders tearing up the Maine countryside are giving the rollicking four-wheelers a bad name (DownEast magazine, May 2003)

At the ETA Annual Meeting in May we heard from H. Wayne Harper from the about the Responsible Riders Association.  Click here for a description of that group. Wayne is the Environmental, Health, & Safety Managerfor the Portland Natural Gas Transmission System.

Also recently a Statewide ATV conference was held in response to the growing ATV problem. The Sportsman's Alliance of Maine (SAM) hosted a Statewide ATV conference on March 18, 2003, in Augusta. Click here to read John Andrew's report on this conference.

Here are some other resources on the Internet to learn more about the various sides in the ATV debate:

• Maine's Department of Conservation ATV Program - working to help organize clubs and establish trail systems to help solve landowner/user conflicts

• Long, detailed article on "The ATV-Trespass Problem" posted on the Small Woodland Owner Association of Maine web site

Know of other helpful information and resources related to ATVs?  Let us know!

Call us (207.284.9260) or e-mail the ETA office