OTISFIELD — Selectmen on Wednesday firmed up the town’s new all-terrain vehicle policy, paving the way for ATV riders to hit the trails beginning May 15.
The board agreed to allow the ATV season to end no later than Dec. 15, or earlier at the discretion of the road commissioner. The move ensures heavy vehicles would not track on plowed roads in the winter.
“When the roads are plowed, there are no shoulders to ride on,” Selectman Len Adler, who suggested the move, said.
The board decided to leave the decision of when to close ATV traffic in the hands of the road commissioner, who will notify the Otisfield ATV club president and vice president.
Selectmen voted in December 2015 to implement a one-year all-terrain vehicle policy to allow ATVs to use certain sections of public roads. They have been working on the new policy since then.
The policy details speed limits, hours of use, the roads which ATVs can use and other information. Use of Otisfield trails and roads will be from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
ATV riders approached the board last fall to say they were forming the Otisfield Trail Blazers ATV Club and asked for permission to use some town roads to access trails.
A public hearing was held in November 2015 when the board said there were concerns by residents, but a majority of people favored the request.
Members of nearby Oxford and Lakes Region ATV clubs also attended the hearing to support Otisfield ATV riders, and to provide more information about how the policy can be successfully implemented.
The policy is expected to be posted on the town’s website soon.
In other business, selectmen:
• Reviewed a draft of the town report;
• Signed the disposition for the tax-acquired property; and
• Signed the Oxford County Board of Commissioners assessors return.
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