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I thought we could use a forum thread about actions we can take to prevent low maintenance roads from being closed. Thought I would talk to my county engineer to see if there is specific statutes a county must meet before eliminating a road. Just contact from interested parties may benefit our cause.
One fellow I talked to said his state wasn't able to abandon a road if there was still public traffic at a certain frequency. If Kansas is the same way, this would be a great project for Motorcycle and 4X4 clubs.
On some roads we have encountered some dedicated local residents trying their best to make sure the roads are impassable (Luke's ride last summer with the huge brush pile). It doesn't matter to me if the county stops maintaining the roads. It's when they abandon a road, but the road is still used by the ranchers for private use. If it's a matter of maintaining fences, Butler county knows what they are doing - put a cattle guard across the road and eliminate the fences along both sides.
I figure if a few of us contact county engineers, we may be able to develop a organized plan to help keep these roads public. We may also talk to local 4X4 clubs to see if they are involved with any similar efforts. I would really hate to see roads like Box Turtle and Little Egypt be arbitarily closed without some sort of discussion. In the case of Soloschied Road which recently closed, on weekends this old road was routinely used by hikers, mountain bikers, 4X4s and motorcycles. I'm sure we all know of roads we would like to preserve.

This is one of those things where everybody says, "somebody should do something about this--check into what can be done"....but then nobody ever does. So I'm glad you are bringing this up and taking action.

Personally, off the top of my head, I'm not familiar enough with the exact location of these roads to make inquiry with authorities. Please let us know what you learn.

I do know that it ticks me off when I'm riding what is/was obviously a public road and the road is "closed" by what is obviously a local landowner's doing. We need a way to verify with an authority what the status of these roads really is.

Is a "county engineer" the most appropriate person regarding this subject? (I did not even know where to begin.)

Thanks, Mac!

My concern would be: Bringing to the attention of the county that these roads are in fact still being used by the public (motorcycles and 4x4s). These roads that they do not maintain and have baiscally forgotten about now may be viewed as a liablity and actually spark a road closure?

Just my thoughts.

Before our ride in Clay County last year I talked to our county Engineer and he told me that when a road has been officially abandoned the road reverts back to the property owners on either side to the center of the road. The road belongs to the county and there is a process of notification they go through when the county wants to close a road. They will abandon a road if a bridge goes out and they don't want to replace it or if it is not being used and they don't want to maintain it. If a road is not being maintained by the county, it probably has been abandoned and it would be private property. Years ago I was riding on an abandoned road and the next day I had a visit from a deputy and told he me I shouldn't go back there. The property owner I met on the road had turned in my tag number.