On using town roads as part of a connecting system

I think there will be a debate about using low volume town roads vs. new bike paths in building connecting bike trails between towns. For example, one could imagine building a new bike path north of Boulder along M all the way to B, then run a bike path along B from Land O Lakes to Presque Isle.

But the alternative would be to use the quiet town roads that exist as much as possible. In this case, Boulder would only have to build a trail to High-Fishtrap road, (about a mile), then follow High Lake road all the way to the end, then build another one mile loop up to highway B. All in all, with only two new miles of bike trail, you are making a connection to the future LOL-Presque Isle link. High Lake Road is very scenic, running by Grassy Lake and primarily rural countryside.

But there are problems. Cars use this road, probably more than other town road segments of bike trails. Personally, I would like to see motor vehicle traffic slowed down anyway, but the chances of car-bike accidents might be increased unless the road was widened. On the other hand, as the Boulder bike trail becomes more popular, these roads are seeing more bicyclists anyway.

Beautiful country roads have their charms, but do they have the appeal a separate bike trail brings? On the other hand, riding along a town road might be quieter and more scenic than a separate bike trail that runs straight north on highway M.

Lets carry this idea further. With a little work, could "Old B" work as a bike trail? What if it was resurfaced but not paved, like the Bearskin trail? It would provide a connection nearly all the way from Land O' Lakes to our one mile link to High Lake Road. We would only need one mile of paved road along B. The Bearskin has a surface that works for bikers and snowmobilers-couldn't we do the same for Old B? Old B is a beautifully scenic country trail. But it is quite remote in places. There are no places to get easily get to "new B" if you have a flat tire. There aren't any watering places until you get to Miller's (the start of the paved bike trail to Land O Lakes). And what about the romance and safety of paved bike paths?





Let the debate begin!