ATV Trail Inspections Program

Overview

A bridge crossing a stream made for ATVs

In 2020, an ATV Task Force was established by Governor Mills' Administration to "recommend how best to address the social, economic, legal, and environmental problems caused by certain ATV operation." The Task Force made several recommendations in their final report which spurred the creation of the current ATV Trail Inspection process. The recommendations related to trail inspections were:

  • Adopt the Best Management Practices (BMPs) found in the Maine Motorized Trail Construction and Maintenance Manual (Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, Off Road Vehicle Division) as the official standards for state-funded ATV trails.
  • Create a standardized annual trail inspection process for the entire ATV trail system.
  • Create a follow-up inspection process and a process for trail closure when conditions warrant.
  • Adequately staff the state ATV program to oversee program enhancements and new trail requirements.

Inspection Process

Considering the Task Force recommendations, the ATV program created an inspection process that identifies BMP, maintenance, signage, and safety issues. Based on Task Force recommendations a third party, independent from the ATV program, was identified to conduct the inspections. The Maine Forest Rangers were identified as a resource that is uniquely suited to perform trail inspections considering their involvement with monitoring and enforcement of Forestry BMPs. Additionally, increased staffing the Off-Road Recreational Vehicle Office with field-based Recreational Trail Coordinators has allowed the program to conduct more in-depth inspections and provide technical training and assistance to ATV Clubs.

Trail Inspection Process (PDF)

A combination of GIS tools and mobile applications were developed to perform the inspection process. Design of the tools was focused on collecting the following data:

  • GPS Tracks of where inspections occurred
  • GPS Points where:
    • There are issues related to:
      • BMPs
      • Trail Surface
      • Vegetation
      • Signage
      • Bridges
      • Access Routes
      • Off trail riding
    • There has been trail maintenance completed
    • There are high quality sections of trail
New atv trail surrounded by trees.

Reporting Process

Additionally, a reporting process was developed to share inspection results with clubs. Once a week, inspection data is reviewed by the ATV Program Staff before generating reports and then sending them to the club. Club contact information is obtained from grant paperwork. An interactive web-based tool is in development for clubs to view inspection data.

Inspection Reports

After reports are received, clubs can contact their Recreational Trail Coordinator to review the report or meet with them for site visits to discuss any issues that were identified. The reports can also be included with grant applications for the upcoming year. By using the map and data from the report, project descriptions and cost estimates can be developed to support the club's grant request. Any points which were identified as BMP Issues are required to be fixed, otherwise the trail may be closed by the ATV Program.