Forest Service proposes flipping its trail rule to "open unless designated closed

The U.S. Forest Service has proposed reversing how it manages motorized access on national forest trails, switching from a system where trails are closed to off-highway vehicles unless explicitly designated open to one where they are open unless marked closed.

The current Travel Management Rule requires each national forest to maintain detailed plans listing which trails allow ATVs, dirt bikes, and other motorized vehicles. The Trump administration says the change will simplify regulations and expand recreation access.

Conservation groups, sportsmen, and non-motorized recreation organizations oppose the revision. Chris Edgington, a watershed manager with Montana Trout Unlimited, pointed to a six-mile stretch of the Middle Fork of the Judith River where vehicle crossings had driven fish populations below 10 percent of expected levels before a coalition rerouted the trail and restored the riverbed. He said a full repeal of the travel management rule would undermine restoration work that depends on those protections.

Kerry White, a former Montana legislator who runs the motorized-access group Citizens for Balanced Use, said the change would improve access for elderly and disabled visitors and put the burden on the Forest Service to post and maintain closure signs.

The public comment period runs through October 6.