KINGFIELD – The all-terrain vehicle season is still months away in Kingfield, but Heather Moody is already worried about residents’ complaining about unsafe riders and noisy engines this year.

Her fear is tied to a recent decision to give the recreational vehicles access to state roads.

The change lets riders drive on sections of state roads to reach trail systems passing through town, according to Moody, chairman of the Kingfield Board of Selectmen.

“I know the town is divided about this,” she said.

Residents voted 60-53 in January to make the change, and the state Department of Transportation approved the request last week to let riders drive all-terrain vehicles on about 600 yards of routes 27 and 142.

It makes Kingfield one of just a handful of towns across Maine approved to let all-terrain vehicles drive on extended sections of state roads, according to state officials. The transportation department can revoke the approval at any time.

Some central Maine towns, including Norridgewock, have similar rules, but most restrict all-terrain vehicles to town roads, leaving the decision to selectmen.

Some residents and business owners in Kingfield wrote letters to the transportation department to complain about its decision.

Claudia Diller, who owns a house in Kingfield with her boyfriend, wrote that it would be unsafe to mix all-terrain vehicles and regular traffic on Route 27.

“There’s plenty of space out in the Maine great woods for (riders) to do whatever they want,” Diller said.

Diller also has doubts that riders will keep all-terrain vehicles on approved roads.

“If they know they can ride on 27, they may feel they can ride on other public roads to get to the approved access routes,” she said.

Town officials and all-terrain vehicle club members in the area are working on ways to address some of the concerns before the season opens in May, according to Moody.

“I don’t want to wait until I have irate people calling me to see what’s going on down there,” Moody said.

Plans include posting signs that make the rules for all-terrain vehicles clear. ATVs should be treated like regular vehicles when driving on roads, she said.

Norridgewock has allowed all-terrain vehicles to drive on sections of town roads for about three years, according to Michelle Flewelling, town manager.

Selectmen consider annual requests by the Norridgewock Sportsman Association for all-terrain vehicle access to certain town roads, Flewelling said. They have approved about eight miles of town roads to date, she said.

Complaints have dropped steadily since the first year, she said.

Dave Davis, trail master for the association, said his group has worked with law enforcement officials and selectmen to address complaints.

It’s best to address complaints so selectmen approve the access, he said.

POLICING THEIR OWN

Maine State Police in Skowhegan don’t get many complaints about all-terrain vehicles driving on public roads, said state police Lt. Don Pomelow.

Clubs in towns that allow all-terrain vehicles on roads try to identify unsafe riders and keep them from jeopardizing the privilege, he said.

“When the permission is there, most people don’t abuse it because they know they can lose it,” Pomelow said.

“They want to be able to get that access, so usually they are policing their own,” he said, referring to all-terrain vehicle clubs and outdoor recreation groups.

The bigger problem is people driving all-terrain vehicles on roads without permission from the town or state, Pomelow said.

No crashes have resulted in the area from all-terrain vehicles driving on approved sections of roads, according to Pomelow. But minor crashes have happened when riders drive on roads without permission, he said.

NO ISSUES SO FAR

The transportation department began approving requests to allow all-terrain vehicles on state roads about three years ago, according to Gene Uhuad, a state Department of Transportation traffic engineer.

Towns wanted to start giving the vehicles access to travel along extended sections of state roads, he said, and state approval is needed for anything more than 500 yards.

There is a small number of state roads approved so far, he said. The roads have to meet safety standards based on speed limits, operating hours and other factors, Uhuad said.

In Kingfield and Rangeley, there is a 25 mph speed limit for the approved sections of state road, according to Uhuad, who oversees requests in Franklin, Somerset, Oxford and Androscoggin counties.

The state can revoke its approval at any time if there are problems tied to safety or other public concerns, and works closely with local law enforcement officials and towns to monitor the issue, he said.

“We haven’t had any issues so far,” Uhuad said.