英國越野摩托車 campaign 和台灣山車的處境

最近英國的這個越野摩托車的請願活動引起不少迴響。這個請願活動目前已取得成立於 1970 年的 The Trail Riders Fellowship 的支援。

延伸：王咪(wangmee)的越野摩托車照片站

Reasons to Ban Trailriding

I’ve listed below the reasons usually given for wanting to ban trailriding, whether nationally or on specific lanes. None of these reasons stand up to scrutiny and in each case I’ve given examples of arguments that can be used to counter those reasons. Further examples can be found in the FAQ.

Trailbikes damage the ground on which they ride.

Untrue. They can of course be made to damage the ground by irresponsible riding, in the same way that irresponsible ramblers leave litter. Somehow I can’t see the Ramblers Association being too impressed if there were calls to ban walking because some people leave litter behind.

Even if this claim were true, to use it as a reason to ban trailriding is yet further proof of the hypocrisy involved. You only need to visit any National Park to see the damage caused by walkers. The Brecon Beacons National Park are embarking on a £90,000 project to repair some of this damage. This will involve using 250 tonnes of stone, flown in using 300 helicopter airlifts (http://www.breconbeacons.org/pressrel/). £6 million to helicopter in stone for the Pennine Way in the Pen-y-Ghent area. £1 million to repair footpaths in the lake district. If our opponents are so worried about the damage they claim we cause, why aren’t they calling for a ban on walking in the Brecon Beacons, and other similarly scarred National Parks?

One of the most significant pieces of evidence to use when countering the damage claim is provided by the British Ecological Society. They made a study of Green Lanes in Cheshire in 2000/2001. Of the 46 lanes they studied, off-road motorcyling was considered a threat on only one, putting it on a par with cattle and garden refuse dumping as a “threatening process". Conversely, walkers and horseriders were the sole threat on three lanes, neglect on six lanes, and farm vehicles on eleven lanes.

The report concludes that off-road driving activities “do not appear to be a significant factor in green lane condition in the Cheshire lanes surveyed, with farming activities more likely to cause churning of the track. Recreational activities whether caused by vehicles, horse-riding or walking affected only 9% of the green lanes examined." Motorbikes only affected 2%.

Trailbikes are excessively noisy.

Untrue. Trailbikes fitted with the original road legal factory silencers are very quiet. I frequently get within 30 yards of walkers before they even know I’m there. Some people do fit louder, illegal silencers for whatever reason. These people are breaking the law, and are very much frowned upon by responsible trail riders and organisations such as the TRF. They are breaking the law, and it is up to the Police to enforce that law.

Trail riders are a hazard to horses.

Untrue. The vast majority of trail riders always stop and switch off their engines when they encounter horses. Of all the other groups of people we meet out on the trails, horse riders are generally the friendliest, and most likely to stop for a chat. Many trail riding clubs help out at horse cross country events, by marking the course and marshalling. See the “Assisting at horse events" section of the TRF website for further details.

There are undoubtedly some horse riders who would like to see motorcycle trail riding banned, but they are very few and far between. I have never had so much as a dirty look from a horse rider in over 30 years of trail riding; it’s a shame I can’t say the same about ramblers.

Trailbikes scare animals.

Maybe they do, but certainly not as much as people on foot do. Animals are used to vehicles in the country; farmers with tractors and quadbikes abound. People are the natural predator, not vehicles. Indeed one of the ‘hazards’ when trail riding in Wales is being mobbed by sheep who mistake you for the farmer.
Trail riders also tend to spend less time in any given place than other users, thus ensuring the duration of any disturbance to animals is reduced.

If motorcyclists want to ride off-road, there are plenty of dedicated areas for them to use.

This suggestion is so absurd, it’s laughable. There are some dedicated areas, mainly motocross practice tracks. Telling trail riders to use those is akin to banning horse riders from bridleways, and telling them to use Cheltenham race course during practice days. How about banning walking in the country, and telling ramblers to walk in circles around the track at their local athletics stadium? I’m sure that would go down very well.

Trail riding is NOT about trying to ride as fast as possible over rough ground. It’s about enjoying the countryside, spending time with friends, keeping fit, learning new skills, and generally just enjoying yourself. Sadly this government seem determined to outlaw anyone who gets any kind of enjoyment out of vehicles, thus making us a very politically incorrect group.

Vehicles should be banned to stop illegal use of Rights of Way.

Fly tipping and abandonment of burnt out cars are frequently given as the reason for applying a TRO (Traffic Restriction Order) to a particular lane to stop vehicles from using it. Another absurd piece of ‘reasoning’. If people are already using Green Lanes illegally, why on earth would anyone think introducing another law will stop them? It’s not unlike creating a new law banning people from walking on carpets which don’t belong to them, in the hope that it will stop burglary.

People who steal cars, drive them down Green Lanes, then set fire to them, are not going to stop doing so just because vehicles are banned from that lane. People who ride stolen motorbikes, or illegal motocross bikes on Green Lanes are not going to stop just because the trail has a TRO. The only people who will stop using those lanes are the ones who currently use them legally i.e. responsible trail riders and four wheel drivers.

In some cases, barriers can be erected to stop vehicles accessing a particular lane. This may stop the fly tippers and car thieves, at least until they break them down, but it’s hard to imagine how illegal motorcycle users could be physically barred without also blocking horse riders.