A vibrating plate makes it possible to compact the gravel mixture provided by the city. "We can't do it with shovels, spades and hand tampers," says association president Frank Wadenpohl to the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper. However, by using the vibratory plate, ZüriTrails has breached the agreement with the city of Zurich not to use machines for trail maintenance. At the same time, ZüriTrails is responsible for this very maintenance and does all the work on a voluntary basis. The fact that they are not allowed to use machines is comparable to the city forester only being allowed to use hand saws. Many mountain bikers in Zurich find the city's requirement incomprehensible because a lawnmower-sized vibratory plate is a small machine with no relevant impact on flora and fauna.

The vibratory plate was used in May, and the conflict with Grün Stadt Zürich has been simmering ever since. Last year, they recorded 2,000 hours of front-line work, Wadenpohl told the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper. This year, the figure is just half that. This is partly due to a lack of understanding on the part of Grün Stadt Zürich. The city of Zurich counters this criticism with the fact that it has to take care of 230 kilometers of forest roads, 150 fireplaces, 1000 benches and that a lot has been invested in the Triemli Trail in recent years. However, the descent from the Uetliberg now counts around 40,000 descents per year, and with 800 members, ZüriTrails is one of the largest sports clubs in the city of Zurich just three years after it was founded. At the same time, mountain bikers are one of the few groups in the city of Zurich that have to maintain their own infrastructure. Grün Stadt Zürich would have figures at its disposal that would justify an increased commitment to mountain bikers. These figures show that on the Uetliberg, mountain bikers account for up to 25 percent of the total number of visitors.

Report in the Tages-Anzeiger:
http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/zuerich/stadt/Die-Biker-fahren-Gruen-Stadt-Zuerich-an-den-Karren/story/11846969

Editorial from Ride 03/2013 on this topic
The Allmend Bike Park is open and Zurich is patting itself on the back. Taxpayers have spent a record-breaking two million francs on the new mountain bike infrastructure. Never before has a municipality in Switzerland invested more money in mountain bike infrastructure at once. And never before has a municipality invested as much in promoting young talent as the city of Zurich. A bike park of this size will show many young people the way to mountain biking. The Bikepark Allmend is likely to prove to be a milestone in Swiss mountain biking.

Is milk and honey now flowing for mountain bikers in the city of Zurich? The reality in Zurich is not nearly as promising. The majority of mountain bikers are not interested in a dirt jump park crammed between a highway, railroad and shopping center. Mountain biking still takes place in the countryside and on single trails. At the edge of the forest, however, the Zurich city authorities stop being biker-friendly. Mountain bikers have no business on trails, says "Grün Stadt Zürich". The only exceptions are specially marked routes. There are two such trails in the Zurich metropolitan area. A third is under construction.

As generous as the city of Zurich has been with the construction of the Allmend bike park, it is just as stingy when it comes to single trails. The "official" bike routes on the Uetliberg and Adlisberg are now built and maintained by the "ZüriTrails" association. The city builds football pitches, swimming pools, gyms, athletics facilities and even skateboard parks. Mountain bikers, on the other hand, have to build their own infrastructure and toil for God's reward. However, mountain bikers are now a population group whose size and needs can no longer be ignored. Frequency measurements on the Üetliberg speak a clear language: up to a quarter of all people in the forest are now on mountain bikes. And the trend is rising.

Nothing against the multi-million euro Bikepark Allmend. It is a milestone in the promotion of mountain biking. Above all, it is a strong piece of youth development work. But at some point, even these youngsters will steer their bikes away from the park and into the forest - and will not be satisfied with just a few official routes and other relegation to the forest roads. A more holistic view would do the city of Zurich good.