Cyclists beware: stay off Rolston Trail in the Broadmead area. New signage is up advising of a pilot project Saanich is currently undertaking that bans cyclists from the trail until July 2012.
A petition with roughly 600 names asking for a cycling prohibition arrived at municipal hall in early October, and parks and recreation director Doug Henderson says feedback will be crucial in determining the success of the test project.
“We’ll gather feedback via comments, and we’re going to do a survey in the new year. Once we’re finished we’ll take a more critical look at whether we can (keep the trail) multi-use or look at changing that,” Henderson said.
Previously, only the portion of Rolston Trail that runs through Rithet’s Bog had been pedestrian-only.
The pilot project covers the section of the trail that runs from Royal Oak Drive along Emily Carr Drive to Shadywood Drive.
Cyclists are asked to follow the signs for Royal Oak Trail, instead of using Rolston.
There are five other areas in Saanich that prohibit cycling: Mount Douglas and Mount Tolmie parks, Knockan Hill, Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary and Glencoe Cove-Kwatsech Park.
For more information or to provide feedback on the pilot project, email parks@saanich.ca.
kslavin@saanichnews.com
Did you know?
• The trail opened in November 2007 and is named in honour of the late Gordon Rolston, who played an integral role in securing land that’s now Rithet’s Bog.