The new Federal Forest Act stipulates that riding bicycles in the forest should only be permitted on roads and suitable paths. This is being hotly debated in the mountain biker scene.
A good third of the land area in Germany is covered with trees. For some the forests are an oasis of peace, for others it is a place to let off steam. Mountain bikers in particular enjoy discovering the forest on their bikes. But free travel could soon be restricted. According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, there will be no ban on cycling in the forest.
The draft of the new Federal Forest Act was leaked in December last year. Paragraph 29 deals with entering the forest. Paragraph 4 states that states can decide to restrict cycling to designated paths only. “In particular, you can stipulate under which conditions the responsible authority and the forest owner may close the forest and when a closure must be lifted again,” says paragraph 4.1.
“There needs to be a rethink”
Matthias Lenk from Windischeschenbach in Bavaria is a mountain bike trainer. He regularly rides with his cyclist friends from Upper Palatinate in the Steinwald Nature Park.
In his opinion, a rethink needs to happen: mountain bike trails should be recognized in the same way as hiking trails. Lenk does not call for specially signposted paths, rather he advocates coexistence in the forest.
Mountain bike trainer Matthias Lenk wants mountain bike routes to be recognized in the same way as hiking trails.
Current Federal Forest Act almost 50 years old
The coalition in Berlin wants to amend the 50-year-old Federal Forest Act. Entering the forest should also be reorganized. The federal states could then decide in the future which paths they consider suitable and where mountain bikers will be allowed to ride in the future.
Niklas Wagener from Aschaffenburg in Lower Franconia sits in the Bundestag for the Greens. He is a member of the Committee on Food and Agriculture and knows the draft bill. The politician is in favor of the new Federal Forest Act providing a framework for cycling in the forest. Since the forests in Germany are different, he thinks it makes sense that in the end it is decided locally what exactly suits the region and what doesn’t.
Furthermore, according to Wagener, it is long overdue to amend the Federal Forest Act. “We are working with a federal forest law from the 1970s in which climate change and species extinction do not yet play a role,” said the Green MP. It will become clear in April whether the leaked draft is actually the final draft. The paper should then be published.
Criticism from associations
Mountain bike associations in Germany are critical of the proposal. Heiko Mittelstädt from the German Mountain Bike Initiative (DIMB) sees the idea in the draft as hardly feasible.
In his opinion, it sounds easy to designate certain paths. But there is an immense amount of coordination involved with the authorities. “And your right of entry depends only on a small mountain bike signpost. If the signpost is gone, you are in violation,” says Mittelstädt.
Collaboration is the goal
Forest owner Bastianträger from Neustadt an der Waldnaab is familiar with the discussion about the new Federal Forest Act. In his opinion, the forest is suffering from enormous pressure for leisure activities. Since the corona pandemic, many people have discovered the forest for themselves and that is why, he believes, the laws need to be adjusted.
Forester Bastianträger has no problem with mountain bikers – as long as they stay on the trails.
The forester sees no problem with mountain biking in the forest. Provided the cyclists stay on the paths. In his opinion, it becomes critical as soon as you drive off the road. He has no sympathy for athletes who drive nails into trees because they want to build a ramp or illegal trails. But these cyclists, saysträger, are only a small proportion.
The forester shows what a solution could look like. In his region, he and a mountain bike club built a trail on the edge of the forest. Now everyone benefits from it – the athletes and nature.