Overview

The RMOW is leading the development of a non-motorized Recreation Trails Strategy (RTS) that will guide future decisions about how we develop, improve, access, fund, and manage trails and trail amenities (e.g., staging areas, signage, etc.). The RTS will not specify the number, location, or types of trails. This will be the focus for a future and more detailed non-motorized Trails Master Plan. To learn more about the RTS, see the tab below.

Phase 3 Engagement

For each of Whistler’s 11 trail network areas, we looked at the general suitability of the area for trail development and made some specific recommendations for community review and feedback. The draft content is included in the RTS Core Content document.

View the phase 3 engagement summary.

Phase 2 Engagement

The previous round of community engagement took place in March-April, 2022 and the input received indicated a high level of support for the direction related to the being set for the project topic areas. See the Public Engagement Summary – Phase 2 document. For more background about the project, please visit the RTS project page.

Please note: Ideas that do not contribute to a safe and respectful space for others, or are unrelated to this topic, will be removed. Please review our moderation policy. Do not include any personal information about yourself or others.

This information is being collected by the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) under Section 26 (e) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. Your personal information will be collected for the purpose of gathering feedback on the Recreation Trails Strategy. The personal information collected includes your screen name and opinions. Your response will be made public once reviewed and may be included in future reports to Council. By submitting your idea, you consent to your screen name and response being collected by Bang the Table, which stores data on a server located in Canada and provides it to the RMOW. Your personal information will be stored securely by the RMOW and deleted one year after the completion of the project. If you have questions about how your personal information is being collected, used or shared please contact privacy@whistler.ca

Open question

RR asked

Open question

KM asked

How/ why do trials bikes get classified as non-motorized, and thereby included in future planning and trail development? These machines are not street legal and must be shuttled to a trail head and they burn gas. It strikes me that any encouragement of an activity that increases emissions is inconsistent with our values.

Open question

Karen Wood asked

It seems to be putting the cart before the horse to proceed with this strategy before there is a master plan for Trail development. Why is there no Trail master plan? How many trails should be built? How many people will these trails serve? How will this number of people be managed with washrooms, traffic, parking, garbage, wildlife interference and on and on. These visions of how and where a trail network should be created need to be answered first... don't they??

Open question

Ben Hryciw asked

In the Trail Funding topic, one of the initial directions is to "Investigate the economic value of volunteer labor contributed to maintaining the network and develop a risk assessment". What risks are you referring to? Risk of trail maintenance not being done properly by volunteers? Risk that volunteers will hurt themselves while doing work? Risk that opportunities for volunteer trail maintenance will affect the pool of volunteers available for other activities?

Open question

Ben Hryciw asked

Open question

president@pembertontrails.com asked

Under the two main topics of Commercial and Event Use and Trail Funding is there a way how the S2S Squamish to Pemberton network (SORCA, WORCA, PVTA, PORCA) can be considered in the solutions package? We all have the same challenges and it would make sense (if possible) to have one working proposal we can all work with.

Open question

zander asked

Open question

Journey asked

Open question

WCS asked

Open question

JB asked

Trail Access and Staging

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below? Identify and prioritize potential staging area additions and enhancements, considering the analysis, background information, and Trail Access and Staging Guidelines contained in the background document (use link below). Add required amenities to high-use T2 (Informal) areas (at minimum) to alleviate some negative impacts and make these areas more desirable than T3 (Roadside) parking. Encourage use of existing under-utilized parking locations. Explore shuttle service options. Encourage and plan for the use of active transportation to access the trail network. Investigate pay parking solutions and implications for staging areas. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides background information and the force field analysis.  

Closed

Environmentally Responsible Trail Planning

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below? Tool DevelopmentDevelop an environmentally responsible trail planning tool (the ERTP tool) based on the environmentally sensitive area rankings and mitigation strategies outlined in this document and corresponding mapping. Communication and Promotion Promote the use of the ERTP tool to trail advocacy groups.  Raise public awareness of the use of the ERTP tool in trail development.  Implementation and Monitoring Update the Whistler Trail Standards (RMOW, 2003) to include the ERTP tool, in addition to current and emerging environmental and trail construction best practices. Include relevant ERTP tool details in trail authorization process that includes formalizing the mitigation strategies to ensure they are understood, considered, and implemented during trail planning, construction, and maintenance. Develop a strategy/protocol for applying the ERTP tool for effective trail development planning, including process to update data within the GIS online mapping.  Train appropriate RMOW staff and other trail crew on use of the ERTP tool for planning.  Maintain up-to-date spatial information on ESAs and continually review the ESA list and ranking to ensure any new ESAs are identified and ranking amended as required. Future studies and strategies, such as Priority Habitat Management Strategy or input from the public and/or professionals, may identify new environmental values that should be considered. Future improvements/enhancements Develop Mitigation Strategies for invasive species in future trails planning best practices for inclusion in the strategy/protocol for applying the ERTP tool for effective tails development planning.  Complete an assessment of the trail network against the ERTP tool to inform restoration, mitigation and/or enhanced management systems. Consider undertaking further additional grizzly bear habitat mapping study beyond the existing spatial extents where appropriate. Consider undertaking a wildlife connectivity study to identify locations and analyze connectivity within the valley to help develop mitigation strategies for inclusion in the ERTP tool. Develop a monitoring program for alignment with ERTP tool and potential future Limits of Acceptable Change process. This should consider how maintenance and management tasks should be triggered by monitoring indicators, providing a staged approach to management.  This is outside of the scope of the ERTP tool but is recommended for consideration as part of a future master planning process. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Approval Processes

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Review upcoming changes to the provincial authorization process to understand the implications on future trail development proposals and opportunities within Whistler, and address implications as needed. Develop a municipal trail development authorization process for reviewing trails within Whistler that aligns with the provincial process regarding environmental review, First Nations consultation, and referrals to appropriate stakeholders. This process would ideally consider and resolve provincial requirements prior to application submission to the Province to decrease review processing time. Review and update the terms of reference for the Trail Planning Working Group to include reviewing and commenting on new trail development applications. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Unsanctioned Trails

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Communicate through a regular education/ media campaign the potential impacts of unsanctioned trail construction on First Nations, environment, private property and long-term trail development planning. Identify in a trails master plan the areas that are suitable for trail construction, and direct trail builders to sanctioned opportunities that immediately engage them. Understand the motivations behind unsanctioned trail building and aim to address them within trail master planning. Coordinate with the Province regarding upcoming changes to provincial authorization process to understand the implications of authorization and ongoing maintenance of unsanctioned trails. Work with the Province to authorize unsanctioned trails that meet provincial standards and municipal guidelines and based on adequate resources to maintain the additional inventory. Investigate reports of unsanctioned trail construction quickly to limit negative impacts. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Commercial and Event Use

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Develop a policy and review process for commercial and event use of Whistler’s trails in collaboration with stakeholders that:: Aligns with the vision and objectives of the Recreation Trails Strategy Aligns with and builds upon existing related initiatives including the Non-Exclusive Use Permit (NEUP). Outlines proponent requirements and evaluation criteria in support of community objectives and related to environmental, trail and social management concerns Establishes trail fees for commercial and event users that are clear, consistent, and comparable to other jurisdiction, based on potential impacts to the network. Is suitable for the variety of land and trail managers as well as commercial and event proponents in the Whistler area Determines acceptable levels of commercial and event use balanced with smart tourism objectives Inventories the network in consideration of a broad range of event types and sizes, weather conditions and other unique considerations Is clear, efficient and streamlined for all parties, defining expectations and requirement Clearly identifies best practice management systems to monitor and encourage or enforce appropriate use levels Develop a guide that helps commercial and event proponents adhere to the policy. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Communications

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Develop a communication strategy for effectively communicating trail-related closures and other announcements to trail users that:   Are coordinated across land managers and trail groups, identifying who is responsible for what Clarifies key messages to ensure users are aware, in advance, of trail openings, closures, and other issues, and they understand the importance of respecting closures.  Where possible explain why trails are closed and why it’s important to respect them would help inform announcements Expand the use of on-site information boards (e.g., dry erase) at high-use staging areas or trailheads to reach users who may not be connected to other information channels. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Trail Inventory

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Continue to utilize trail designs that appeal to a wide range of skill sets (e.g., Flashback in Cheakamus and Chipmunk Rebellion 1&2 in Westside-Sproatt) to maximize sustainability, use across skill levels, and cost effectiveness. Analyze and identify opportunities and deficiencies within the network (e.g. types of trails, trails targeting particular user groups, difficulties of trails, connectivity, adaptive, etc.) to inform a master plan. Increase the focus on network areas that are appropriate for specific difficulties and skill progression while also enabling connectivity of Trail Network Areas s across all skill levels.   Update the Whistler Trail Standards to include other user-type requirements (hiking, trail running, trials moto). Consult trials bike stakeholders regarding trails and areas appropriate to consider for authorization. Review this document and this map if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed

Trail Funding

What changes or additions would you suggest to the proposed Initial Directions below?  Explore long-term funding models to support for the ongoing maintenance of the trail network. Leverage commercial and event use of the trail network to fund trail maintenance and construction. For example, establish a standardized and universal commercial fee program. Pursue community amenity contributions from developers to support the trail network where relevant. Investigate onsite donation opportunities at key staging areas and trailheads. Investigate the economic value of volunteer labor contributed to maintaining the network and develop a risk assessment. Review this document if you want to understand how we got to the above list of Initial Directions. It provides the background information and force field analysis.  

Closed