One of the defining features of Boulder — and one of the things residents are most proud of — is that we are an active, physically fit city. We use the natural beauty that abounds in this valley and along our stretch of the Front Range to hike, bike, climb and generally enjoy our natural landscape.

And it is this love of nature and our desire to preserve and protect it while also enjoying it, that is at the root of the conflict surrounding e-bikes on our open space trails.

That conflict reached a head last week when the Boulder City Council approved an ordinance to allow e-bikes on some open space trails.

The ordinance will allow Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes on plains trails east of Broadway and Boulder Canyon Trail. The new rules will give riders access to 34 additional miles of open space trails, or roughly 22% of the 154-mile Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks trail network.

It was a divisive decision, but it is nonetheless a step in the right direction for the city.

As e-bikes continue to grow in popularity, now is the time for Boulder to embrace their benefits so that we can continue encouraging people to find more environmentally friendly ways to travel around our city and prolong and expand access to our cherished open spaces for everyone.

The benefits of e-bikes on our open space trails are two-fold.

First, the assistance e-bikes provide to riders allows more people the opportunity to get out on a bike. Whether it is a lifelong cyclist who is aging and needs a little help over that final hill, someone who is building their fitness and learning to enjoy the benefits of riding a bike, or someone who is simply differently abled, e-bikes help ensure there is equity of access to our outdoor spaces.

And second, how we travel throughout our community is in need of reimagining.

Whether it is housing, trail access or CU’s growth, there are few issues in Boulder that do not involve traffic or parking. E-bikes are not the end-all, be-all solution, but they could be one vital prong of a multipronged approach.

What Boulder does not need are more roads or more lanes or more parking. As everyone here knows, we have limited space, and cars already take up too much of it. This is not to imply that cars are not important or necessary for some members of our community, but rather to highlight that at a certain point, more cars and more roads and more parking cannot fix the problem of traffic.

Our city needs vast investment in public transit (potentially the long-promised and never delivered RTD Northwest Rail Line), and more infrastructure designed to facilitate walking and biking. It has to be so easy to walk, bike or take public transit that it becomes people’s first choice.

This is where e-bikes come in. For many around Boulder, walking and biking are easy and second nature. But mobility and physical fitness are, in some respects, a privilege. Some people who would love to be able to commute on a bike are simply unable. E-bikes help bridge that gap.

And our open space trails come in when they help people crisscross town more efficiently. (Boulder’s Open Space Board of Trustees even saw the value of this, recommending that e-bikes only be allowed trails as necessary to enable connectivity and contiguity in a multijurisdictional regional trail system.)

This issue is complicated. At the City Council’s meeting, people spoke about “passive recreation” and motorized vehicles; the City Charter and the Visitor Master Plan; the safety of walkers, pets and children; and the erosion of our natural environment.

These are valid issues and deserve to be properly addressed.

Most important is safety. Class 1 and class 2 e-bikes have a top speed of 20 mph, faster than the average traditional bicycle. (Serious cyclists often average above 20 mph.) Higher speeds can lead to more crashes and more severe injuries.

So, as e-bikes continue to grow in popularity, what matters are riders and how they interact with our trails and with the people they share trails with. The easy comparison is cars. Most any car has the ability to surpass the speed limit and endanger the lives of nearby drivers, bikers and pedestrians. But what we count on every day we get behind the wheel of a car, is the responsibility of our fellow drivers. We trust them to stay in their lane, use their blinkers, check their blindspots and follow the same rules as us — or for their infractions to be punished.

Even if you are a defensive driver leery of every other car, driving among thousands of other cars is an act of trust.

Now, we must trust e-bikers who choose to use our open space trails to be respectful and safe. Riders should remember that they are sharing this space; they should be mindful of walkers and runners and fellow bikers; and they should be sure to adhere to the speed limits and the rules of right-of-way.

(It might seem a strained argument to suggest e-bikers approach open space trails with the same sort of implicit contract that drivers do when taking to the streets considering how often that contract is impinged upon by scofflaws and angry commuters. But we are optimistically hoping that in reimagining how we travel throughout our community, we can begin to rid ourselves of the rage associated with traffic while also hoping that we as a society can simply do better.)

On the other side of this contract are walkers, runners and traditional bikers who must do their part to be aware that they are sharing our trails. This might mean not wearing headphones, so as to be more aware of what is going on outside our bubble. In our public spaces, safety takes a community effort.

And, finally, there is the issue of the environment. For some, the environmental benefits of expanding e-bikes are obvious: less polluting cars on the road. For others, the issue is about the degradation of our open spaces. Weighing the two interests is complicated, but, in light of our battle against climate change, it seems prudent to continue striving to wean ourselves from harmful vehicles — while also doing our best to preserve our open spaces.

Our world — and our environment — are changing. To meet the demands of the time, we must be willing to change, too. E-bikes are not for everyone — and they are certainly going to continue getting under some people’s skin — but, for the sake of the bigger picture, it’s important we embrace — and regulate — their use in Boulder.

Gary Garrison for the Editorial Board