Off-road motorcycling plans

OFF-ROAD motorcycle trails will be established in South Australia’s state forests in a bid to boost jobs and visitor numbers under an SA-Best election pledge.

SA-Best leader Nick Xenophon pledged to revive the Labor Government’s off-road motorcycling master plan if the party wins the balance of power after the state election.

Mr Xenophon said access to designated parts of state forests had long been identified as a key opportunity for trail riding.

“Evidence indicates that where riders have access to designated off-road trails they are generally very responsible, stick to the designated trails and become quite self-regulating in terms of admonishing bad behaviour,” he said.

“We need to make sure there are legitimate facilities and spaces available for participants to access.

“SA-Best believes it is in everyone’s interest to establish a network of off-road motorcycle trails in South Australia’s state forests.”

Mr Xenophon said the system would be modelled on Victoria, which has about 36,000km of public roads through state forests, parks and reserves available for use by licensed riders on registered motorcycles.