Travel Management

Tonto National Forest officials signed the Final Record of Decision for the forest’s Travel Management Plan on October 5, 2021. 

Release of the Travel Management Plan Final Record of Decision is the culmination of a Forest-wide, 10-year planning process. Following several years of public input and analyzing comments and objections, Forest Supervisor Neil Bosworth released the Forest Service’s decision on how motorized vehicle use will be managed on the 2.9 million-acre Tonto National Forest. This decision is part of a nationwide effort by the USDA Forest Service to address motorized recreation. 

The new travel plan delivers on several important updates found through public comment to include over 4,200 miles of roads and motorized trails open to the public, eight Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) areas where travel off of designated system roads and motorized trails is permitted along with three permit zones.  

Motor vehicle use solely for retrieving legally harvested elk and bear for all hunts up to one mile on both sides of all designated roads and motorized trails is also included. Motor vehicle use for dispersed camping will continue to be a priority with approximately 91 miles of full-sized motorized trails that access approximately 2,750 dispersed camping sites. For those seeking to continue to access areas for fuelwood, the use of motorized vehicles off of designated system roads and motorized trails will continue to aid in the collection of permitted personal fuelwood within appropriate areas designed for cutting and collection. 

Roads and Trails Designated for Motor Vehicle Use

I designate a total of 4,215 miles of motorized routes consisting of both roads and motorized trails. Of this total, 1,544 miles are designated as roads and 2,671 miles are designated as motorized trails.

All documentation related to this project can be found on the project website.

For further information, please contact either: