It was unlikely from the outset that this vote would go in favor of female mountain bikers. IG Mountainbike Zug and the bike clubs of the canton of Central Switzerland did what they could: To educate and persuade with a modest budget. 

In the end, 27 percent of voters approved their referendum against the new forest law. That is far more than the approximately 10 percent of the population who regularly go mountain biking. However, it will hardly ever be possible to prove whether all the votes in favor of the referendum are actually a vote for the widest possible access to single trails.

73% have no ear for mountain bikers

On the other side are the almost 73% of voters who want to keep the Forest Act as it was enacted by Parliament at the beginning of 2024. The concerns of mountain bikers were no reason for them to reject the entire law, which is about much more than bans on riding on narrow trails.

The mountain bike network in the structure plan is not yet definitive, so it is not yet clear which single trails will be preserved for bikers. What is certain is that the community will have to put up with restrictions. The president of the referendum-leading IG Mountainbike Zug hopes that improvements to the bike network are possible.