Bernson Urges Repeal of New Fee for Use of County Trails

Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson on Tuesday urged repeal of a controversial new $23 annual fee charged to hikers, bicyclists and equestrians who use county trails.

Bernson asked the City Council to pass a resolution opposing the fee and to notify the County Board of Supervisors of its stand. The council will vote on the measure next Tuesday.

The cash-strapped county last fall approved the plan to charge for use of its 330 miles of trails. The program began Jan. 1 and was due to become mandatory Feb. 1.

But the board last week voted to waive enforcement of the annual fee for two weeks while county parks officials study an alternative: to ask corporations and other donors to pay for trail maintenance.

Despite warnings by the county that the trails could be closed if sufficient funds for their upkeep aren’t found, Bernson said he opposes the fees because they would hit low-income residents hardest, and because the city and other nearby counties have no similar fees. There are no marked boundaries on the trails, and hikers could unintentionally wander onto a county trail without having the necessary permit, he said.

“At a time when the nation is encouraging everyone to get out and exercise, the county is considering the imposition of a fee to discourage such activities,” Bernson said.

Also Tuesday, a county Parks and Recreation Department official described a new plan to sell cheaper, three-day trail passes.

Tony Yakimowich, parks and recreation budget chief, said he hopes to have the proposal ready for a vote by the Board of Supervisors by early next month. If approved, the revised pass program could be implemented by mid-March, he said.

The parks department is also surveying businesses and organizations to determine interest in the “adopt-a-trail” program proposed by Supervisor Mike Antonovich. Antonovich said the county could raise $450,000 a year through the program, but Yakimowich and other parks officials doubt that enough sponsors can be found, and they argue that the pass program will still be needed to keep the trails open.

Yakimowich said the three-day pass would answer complaints that the cost of the annual pass is unfair to out-of-town visitors and others who use trails only occasionally. The pass would cost about $6.

Trail users would be required to carry the passes. A first-time violation would carry a $54 fine, Yakimowich said.