indyfabz

Yep. In populated areas, trails have been shown to increase property values. They can also spur investment. Just did the GAP up and back. Several properties in different towns have been purchased and turned into guest houses/B&Bs. Another property was recently turned into a very nice campground.

indyfabz

Sometimes you see eerie rock formations from an MUP. Kind of looks like a face.

wphamilton

Unicycles. Very slow snakes and very fast turtles, smart-alec crows.

Zagster - local bike-share - against the odds is becoming more and more popular.

There is a microbrewery near the trailhead, that I've ridden by every day for about 6 years and never stopped. A fledgeling cyclist/hipster scene is developing around the shaded tables out front; I suspect they dress up, get on the Greenway for a mile or two, then soak up the ambience for an hour.

burnthesheep

I still take them as a positive overall. When on them I relegate it to a slow cut thru with obstacles.

What we need to address is an epidemic of “American exceptionalism and entitlement syndrome” among the MUP users.

It’s a bunch of FYIGM attitudes out there.

woodcraft

One route that I take goes along a creek/estuary, and the rowing club has their dock

and clubhouse on either sides of the path.

Sometimes have to dodge racing shells crossing.

Also watch out for fishing back-casts.

Joe Bikerider

My local MUP the CoCoCanal trail has a yearly tradition that always makes me smile. A local kindergarten writes all their graduates names on the trail. In chalk and alphabetic order. This year it was Alexis through to Victoria. I’ve never seen the actual writing ceremony. It’s a short walk from the school to the path. After the first rain or two it’s already erased and ready for next year. Good luck little guys!

sheddle

It's an actual studied phenomenon that the people most scared of crime are people who live in areas with very little crime. It's one of those things that has effects like not building trails or transit lines to rural zero-crime areas because some local politician riles up the local voters about how all the "urban criminals" will apparently use them to come to Haverbock to do crimes or something.

unterhausen

Relatively speaking, this whole area is zero crime. We leave our doors unlocked, for example. The idea that there is some criminal element that will leave town and go steal things from people who mostly own hay bales is a bit ridiculous. Other than alcohol related offenses and other stupid things students do, our serious crime is virtually all committed by transients and people from rural areas that come into town. They could just as well steal hay bales on the way into town.

Gresp15C

My town is relatively low crime, for being a mid sized city and all. Our rural areas are not exactly crime free, but crimes and injuries tend to involve alcohol, drugs, firearms, and internal combustion engines, none of which are in abundance on MUPs. I have a hypothesis that criminals are lazy and cowardly, so they're unlikely to choose cycling as their mode of transportation. A friend of mine is a state prosecutor, and the rural areas keep him plenty busy.

Our MUPs are great. Sometimes you have to slow down for other users, and that's just fine. Slowing down should be part of good bike handling skills anyway. That's what brakes are for. Returning to your cruising speed is what legs are for.

My main gripes have to do with riding the paths at night. Folks should be more courteous about having really bright lights on the MUPs. Also, joggers should make some effort to be visible. The Madison Ninja Joggers tend to wear all black from head to toe, and they're all wearing earbuds as well. It's mainly a problem when the time changes in the fall, because it's suddenly dark. Within a few weeks, the cold weather will take care of them.

Cougrrcj

Nope. Not ever riding a city/county MUP again, for ALL of the reasons the OP noted. And even though I've been a member of Rails-to-Trails since they started in 1986, I have yet to ride on one. MAYBE I'd ride on a rural one, but not where there are Trail Toads clogging them up. I my normal riding pace is anywhere between 17-21mph, and I refuse to slow down to our local MUP speed limit of 8mph.

livedarklions

This! I've developed some wicked good acceleration skills on the mups. If it's not safe to pass, I'll slow to walking speed while I wait for the left lane to clear and I won't say anything because I don't want the pedestrians to think I'm telling them to crowd themselves on the right edge. Once it clears, I announce and work my way around them then accelerate immediately in front of them. I've had a couple of people complain because they thought I had passed them closely at speed when I actually passed them very far to their left and hadn't attained any serious speed at that point. They just see the rapidly receding bike pull into their lane a few feet ahead of them and they just assume I had been going that fast all along. I just got really good at a well-practiced maneuver.

livedarklions

I wouldn't ride on anything with a limit of 8 mph either. My cruising speed is a bit higher than yours, however, and there are several rail trails in my area where I can ride uninterrupted at speed for several miles.

I find that it's hit or miss whether an urban street will be more or less clogged than an urban MUP, and it's a lot less pleasant to get stuck behind and between Amazon vans, postal jeeps, city buses and people who like to double park.

There's really no MUP with a higher speed limit where you are? That's effectively a "no bike commuting" rule. Defeats one of the major purposes.

Miele Man

When they were first talking about converting the old electric railway line to a rail-trail many property owners were quite concerned about how it's impact them. However, once the conversion to a rail-trail was done those property owners found that there was a lot less partying along the rail-trail than there was along the abandoned electric railway. Seems the bush partiers went to other more secluded areas. So with the advent of the rail-trail the property owners along it benefited.

Cheers

Cheers

Humpy

I like the idea OP!

I'd like to see discussion of singing out loud while using the MUP, and also issues with body odor.

Plus, I think to keep this entertaining the discussion should include a prodigious use of asterisks such as:

indyfabz

That very thing happened in S. Jersey when a new light rail line was being proposed from Trenton south, passing through Camden, which has a lot of crime. Many communities south of Camden opposed the project due to fears of an increase in crime coming from Camden, among other reasons. As a result, the line was built between Trento and Camden only. The service exceeded ridership estimates from the git go and spawned redevelopment and increased property values in the towns it passes through. A lot of people south of Camden now want the line extended.

FlMTNdude

Most of what I am getting from this is we have an overbreeding/overpopulated/humans as an invasive species issue.

indyfabz

A couple of shots from the Route of the Hiawatha Trail. That particular tunnel is 1.66 miles long, unlit and has water dripping from the ceiling. Cool stuff.

unterhausen

I just discovered a new train near here yesterday. The state prison owned some land that was prime fishing area, and gave it to the local government. There had been a singletrack, but now it's a wide cinder trail. Very nice. I suppose there are probably some mountain bikers that miss the singletrack, it was fun. But I'm sure this trail will be used by a lot more people.

Rajflyboy

What is a MUP trail?

indyfabz

MUP trail is redundant. MUP=Multiple use path.

indyfabz

This little fellow was along a MUP two years ago. I spooked him and he swam across the creek.

MNebiker

Ah - Finally! Somebody who understands!

Like I said, more entertainment than the Sunday funnies.

tkamd73 

Will take all the annoyances of the MUP any day, vs riding with the cars and trucks. Also painfully discovered that after years of being around jet engines, I can no longer hear the little bells some cyclist like to use. Have never missed an, “on your left”, call though. At least my bike was rideable after the collision, other guy had to walk.
Tim

locolobo13 

One of the paths I bike regularly has people fishing on it. Most of the time they sit on or near the bank to do this. Sometimes they park their camping chairs all across the path with the fishing lines stretching completely across the width of the path. Sometimes you can ride around. Sometimes you're forced to say excuse me and walk your bike thru.

Milton Keynes

How about a chain lube thread?