[pct-l] survey on trail conflicts

[Ken Murray]

Appendix C of this paper, which starts on page 411 of 918 (!), is a survey of agencies relating to conflict.  The PCTA is one of the agencies surveyed, and the USFS is another.

Some interesting notes:

"However, several other agencies indicated that trail user conflicts are not an issue in their jurisdiction. The
State Parks Monterey Sector, Asilomar Sector, and Big Sur Sectors reported that complaints are so low that
they did not complete the survey. Other agencies or State Parks districts completed the survey but stated that
they did not feel conflicts between user groups on unpaved trails were an issue in their jurisdiction."

"The USFS Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit staff highlighted the difference between incidents and
complaints as indicators of user conflict, noting that use conflicts are “very subjective and determined by
individuals.”"

"While few of the agencies surveyed provided incident data, the majority of representatives responded that in
their professional experience, actual incidents are uncommon. As shown in Table C-2, only eight of the
agencies surveyed maintain incident data, and four of those reported no incidents. Santa Clara County Parks
and Recreation provided data which indicate that eight to twelve incidents involving multiple uses occurred
during 2008-2010 (four of the equestrian-related injuries did not provide information about what spooked the
horse).
Capital Regional District (CRD Parks) BC stated that, “we have over 80 kms of Regional Trails in our region
with over 2 million users per year. Based on that, the ratio of complaints we receive is very low.”"

"However, agency representatives varied on whether they felt signs had any
impact on user behavior."

"Alternate Use Days and Times
JCOS has designated alternate use days (i.e., mountain bikers on one day and hikers on another) as well as
directional travel (mountain bikers can only ride in one direction on certain days). JCOS staff reports that the
alternate use was a successful management response, as were the separate trails. User groups were resistant at
first but were eventually satisfied with the management strategy.
In Santa Barbara, the Forest Service initially recommended alternate use, but the process did not include
public involvement or multi-agency coordination, resulting in significant public resistance to the strategy. The
Town of Pagosa Springs also reports that efforts to institute alternative use days were unsuccessful."

"The Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz hold a carrot ride at Wilder Ranch State Park, wherein mountain bikers
hand carrots out to horses to make a positive connection with the horse, to reduce horses’ likelihood of being
spooked when mountain bikers approach. In partnership with the City of San Luis Obispo, the local mountain
bike user group holds bell give-aways, which have had a positive impact on mountain bikers’ use of bells when
passing other trail users."