Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation comes out against Flow Trails!

In a recent letter to the City, the President of the WC Open Space Foundation, Bill Hunt, articulated his concerns with the current enforcement of mountain biking rules in the open space, and his concern with the proposed Flow Trails.

If you are not already a member of the Open Space Foundation, please consider joining today at wcosf.org

Bill makes a compelling case! Please read his letter below.

“In the last few years, use of single track trails by mountain bike riders have increased dramatically. This use is not sanctioned by City of Walnut Creek ordinances but has become increasingly common. During 2020 and 2021, this use has increased during weekdays since many people have been working from home. Some mountain bike riders travel at speeds above the 15 mph limit specified by City ordinances and refuse to yield the right-of way to hikers and equestrians. As a result of dangerous encounters with such mountain bike riders and aggressive behavior including harassment, hikers and equestrians are becoming reluctant to use single track trails in our Open Space. We hear from hikers and equestrians about these concerns and we have our own personal experiences.

Our Open Space is also threatened by unauthorized trails constructed by individuals. These trails carve up our Open Space removing wildflowers and other native plants. Use of these trails disturbs wildlife giving them fewer places to avoid people.

The Trails Committee report recognizes the need to address these problems. It recommends education about the value of our Open Space and the reason for rules for visitors to our Open Space. The report also recommends enforcement of the rules with citations for violators. WCOSF strongly supports education and enforcement in our Open Space.

The report also presented a proposal for a new single track trail in Lime Ridge Open Space designed for safe use by mountain bike riders. WCOSF endorsed the report including the proposal for the new trail. We hope that this will draw mountain bike riders away from using the existing single track trails near the summit of Lime Ridge. However, we are concerned that this new trail may not result in reduced bike traffic on existing single track trails but rather be a magnet drawing more mountain bike riders who then also ride on trails for which they are not authorized.

The increasing frequency of very dry years has stressed our Open Space and its plants and animals. This pattern may require changes to the way Walnut Creek manages its Open Space areas.

We urge the City of Walnut Creek to make addressing these existing problems its first priority in our Open Space. Before we proceed with the proposed bike oriented trail, we should demonstrate that we can reduce current problems before we risk making those problems worse.

WCOSF is ready to help the City of Walnut Creek in its efforts to address the concerns we have discussed through education and enforcement. Please keep us informed of your plans so that we can provide assistance and support.

We feel that mountain bike groups, bike shops and individual mountain bike riders should also play a role in education efforts. From surveys and reports from individual Open Space users, we know that efforts by hikers and equestrians to discuss rules and trail etiquette are often not appreciated by mountain bike riders. The messages also need to come from other mountain bike riders.

This letter has focused on Lime Ridge Open Space but the same problems are present in our other Open Space units. Our Open Space is one of the best things about Walnut Creek and is appreciated by our residents. We need to make sure that those residents can visit our Open Space feeling safe and comfortable and that our Open Space is not degraded by misuse.”