Should electric bikes and perhaps electric scooters be allowed on the carriage roads at Acadia National Park?/Rebecca Latson file
A story caught my eye the other day. It centered on electric bikes, and where they can roam in the National Park System. The story centered around Acadia National Park in Maine and raised the prospect that e-bikes might one day be allowed to travel the park's iconic carriage roads. Is that a good idea?
For now, the park is blocking the motorized bikes from heading down the carriage roads, which are restricting to muscle-powered cyclists, hikers, and equestrian travelers. But the AP story adds that "new rules are expected in the coming weeks."
“I’m hoping that they’re going to come to reality,” said one of the cyclists interviewed by the AP. “This will get more popular as time goes on.”
Well, there are a lot of popular things out there, but do they all deserve access in the parks? Remember Segways? What about those electric scooters that are all the rage in metropolitan areas? Will they be next to seek access to trails and areas normally off-limits to motorized vehicles?
In Canada, a pilot program is under way to test e-bikes on trails in Jasper National Park.
"There's a lot of places in the national park that are accessible by bike but maybe not to the entire general public due to limitations on fitness, etc.," Marc Vien, sales manager at Jasper Source for Sports, told CBC News. "But those e-bikes allow people to get to those places easily."
Tell us, travelers, how much access in the National Park System should electric bikes have?
Comments
have you ever ridden one?
Yes, please allow e-bikes on the majority of Park trails along the main thoroughfares and pathways separate from the established road system. There is no need to accommodate e-bikes on mountain hiking trails. Believe me, we go far slower than the avid road bikers.
Overall, yes - there are a lot of people with mobility issues for whom an e-bike or e-trike allows them to continue to participate "normally" with their younger or more able friends and family. Generally, they should be allowed anywhere a horse is allowed, as they have a similar top speed (most states and manufacturers limit ebike speeds to 20mph) and footprint. like all transportation modes in the National Parks, the mode doesn't keep people from being jerks. I was punched in Yellowstone once by a "regular" cyclist after he rode dangerously close to and cut off a family on the paved trail near Old Faithful. Should we ban all bikes because of incidents like this? No, we should ban jerks - but how do you do that? Not sure I have a good answer, but in general, we should be regulating the behavior in the parks, and not the conveyance. If the trail is too steep, or too prone to rockfall, or too narrow for 2 bikes/horses/ebikes to pass each other, then my personal opinion is it should be limited to hikers - but the carriage roads? Say "ok", set speed limits, and aggressively fine and reject access to those who break the speed limit or endanger other trail users.
Matt, I am all for banning jerks, on bikes, on foot and in cars. They come in all forms of transportation unfortunately. Too bad there's not a preferred mode of transport for jerks or we could just focus on that.
I would allow ebikes on paved and unpaved roads in National Parks and paved trails which currently permit muscle powered bicycles. I would not allow ebikes on trails designed for mountain biking - I think the risk to insufficiently skilled riders and increase SAR costs is too high to put ebikes on mountain biking trails. If a park has a nonpaved trail which is designed for simple nonmotorized travel, say a dirt trail from a campground to a visitors center, then that seems suitable for ebikes. I know the NPS is concerned that allowing an ebike would open the door to motorcycles or even mopeds, which significantly increase the likelihood of resource damage and off road and off trail use. Ebikes do not have the power of those vehicles. From my understanding, pedaling is needed even on ebikes and the battery wouldn't last long if someone rode it like a moped. I am an avid cyclist, but can admit my ability falls short of steep roads that are found in many national parks. I don't mind some hike a bike, but avoid riding places I might otherwise consider out of fear of too much climbing. The ability to rent an ebike at a place like Arches National Park, for example, would enable me to leave my car in town and bike.
For the love of God, however, no eScooters! Those are a nightmare. The majority of riders in my city ignore every rule or ordinance associated with them. And those who ride them are capable of walking.
I have had the same experience in our National Parks and National Forests.
On March 29th, 2019, I was riding my bike with my family on a public mountain bike trail in the Coconino National Forest in Sedona, Arizona. It was supposed to be a fun family outing.
Five Forest Service Rangers riding mountain bikes approached me on the bike trail. They asked me: "Is that an electric bike?" They had to ask, because, to the untrained eye, my electric pedal-assist bike is virtually indistinguishable from an ordinary bike. My pedal-assist bike is the same size and shape of an ordinary bike, has the same wheels and tires as an ordinary bike, is absolutely silent, and I must pedal it to make it move. My bike and I weigh no more than a typical man on an ordinary bike.
I explained: Without this modern and marvelous assistive device, I would have to remain at home instead of participating in bike rides with my family. At 60 years old I am effectively disabled from decades on my feet, working as a trauma nurse. I am facing double knee replacement surgery. I cannot walk or hike very far without wearing a leg brace and using walking sticks for support. I cannot participate in family bike rides without the assistance of my electric pedal-assist bike. I carry a letter from my Orthopedic Surgeon attesting to these facts.
The Forest Service Rangers evicted me from the Park, while allowing my family to continue on the bike trail without me.
"You can not ride on National Forest trails with other bike riders," the Forest Service Rangers insisted. "You are riding a motorized vehicle," the Forest Service Rangers said, citing current law.
That is just silly, of course--an obvious misinterpretation of the law, and a misunderstanding of the technology. A motorized vehicle operates under its own power--it is self-propelled. My bike is not self-propelled--it requires human power, it must be pedaled to make it move. The bike's internal computer measures my pedaling effort and "adds in" a little extra power when I have difficulty--providing assistance. Stop pedaling and the bike stops. On a level surface and downhill, the motor often does nothing because the computer knows I don't need help.
In my case, the motor-assist compensates for my damaged and disabled knees--it makes me equal to other riders on the trail. My bike is also computer-limited to speeds far lower than an able-bodied person can ride an ordinary bike. My bike will not go faster than 18-20 mph on an open, flat road, for example. My husband easily rides his ordinary bike at 20-plus mph under those conditions. And everyone is faster than me on a typical mountain bike trail--mountain biking is so strenuous, I travel at 3-10 mph, just like the able-bodied riders around me.
The Forest Service Rangers offered me a horrible alternative: "You can ride your pedal-assist bike on the roads with cars, jeeps, trucks, ATVs, and motorcycles."
So, I am permitted to ride my pedal-assist bike on the less-scenic and far more dangerous roads, alongside the high-speed, tons-heavier jeeps and trucks spewing exhaust from their noisy internal-combustion engines. I wonder: Does the Federal Government also want me to drink from a separate water fountain, and eat at a separate lunch counter? Is it Government policy to offer me "separate but equal" recreation?
The Federal Government insists--with the force of law--that companies, schools, and offices, provide equal access to all facilities to the elderly and disabled. Our National Parks and National Forests install curb cuts, ramps, and railings to make park visitor centers accessible--yet their policies, by default, restrict access to the interior of the parks and forests to the young and able-bodied.
I am asking to be allowed to enjoy our country's National Parks and National Forests in the same manner as an able-bodied person. My pedal-assist bike compensates for my disability and enables me to do that.
The Federal Government need do nothing, spend no money, make no additional effort. No modifications to existing bike trails are needed to make them accessible--my bike handles that automatically at my own expense.
There is no Federal Government burden. Just treat me the same as any other bike rider. Just permit me to ride my pedal-assist bike in the parks with my family.
It's time to do the right thing: Embrace modern assistive technology for elderly and the disabled in our National Parks and National Forests. Embrace modern assistive technology.
Without this modern and marvelous assistive device, I would have to remain at home instead of participating in bike rides with my family. At 60 years old I am effectively disabled from decades on my feet, working as a trauma nurse. I am facing double knee replacement surgery. I cannot walk or hike very far without wearing a leg brace and using walking sticks for support. I cannot participate in family bike rides without the assistance of my electric pedal-assist bike. I carry a letter from my Orthopedic Surgeon attesting to these facts.
In my case, the motor-assist compensates for my damaged and disabled knees--it makes me equal to other riders on the trail. My bike is also computer-limited to speeds far lower than an able-bodied person can ride an ordinary bike. My bike will not go faster than 18-20 mph on an open, flat road, for example. My husband easily rides his ordinary bike at 20-plus mph under those conditions. And everyone is faster than me on a typical mountain bike trail--mountain biking is so strenuous, I travel at 3-10 mph, just like the able-bodied riders around me.
The Federal Government insists--with the force of law--that companies, schools, and offices, provide equal access to all facilities to the elderly and disabled. Our National Parks and National Forests install curb cuts, ramps, and railings to make park visitor centers accessible--yet their policies, by default, restrict access to the interior of the parks and forests to the young and able-bodied.
I am asking to be allowed to enjoy our country's National Parks and National Forests in the same manner as an able-bodied person. My pedal-assist bike compensates for my disability and enables me to do that.
The Federal Government need do nothing, spend no money, make no additional effort. No modifications to existing bike trails are needed to make them accessible--my bike handles that automatically at my own expense.
There is no Federal Government burden. Just treat me the same as any other bike rider. Just permit me to ride my pedal-assist bike in the parks with my family.
When I see a sign in the National Parks that says NO PEDAL-ASSIST BIKES ALLOWED, this is what it says to me: "Hey Old Lady, go sit in your wheelchair in the parking lot and wait for your family to return from their bike ride."
Class 1 & 2 ebikes should absolutely be allowed on bicycle commuter arteries like the one's in DC that are currently subject to an NPS ban eg GW Trail, CCT, etc. Particularly as all the adjacent juridictions are in the process of changing their municipal or state regulations to permit low speed ebikes on sidewalks and trails eg the recently adopted 3-Class bpsa/pub model ebike legislation in Maryland, and the recently proposed DC Electric Mobility Devices Amendment Act of 2019