"Environmental damage": Bikes banned on Sella del Diavolo and Colle di Sant'Elia, fines issued.
The Forestry Department has tightened its grip: traffic is only permitted on paved or asphalted roads and on the road leading to the Sant'Ignazio fort. Fines of up to €516 are applicable.Per restare aggiornato entra nel nostro canale Whatsapp
Bicycles are prohibited on the Devil's Saddle trails. In the Calamosca and Sant'Elia hill areas, they will only be allowed on the narrow road between the lighthouse and the Sant'Ignazio fort and, of course, on the paved and asphalt roads.
With a decree dated September 23, 2025, Councilor for Environmental Protection Rosanna Laconi approved, at the request of the Forestry Corps, the addition of Article 5 of the provisions already adopted with the March 2021 Departmental Decree "in order to protect the fragile ecological and hydrogeological balance of the Sella del Diavolo and Colle di Sant'Elia in Cagliari."
This integration, the Forestry Commission explains, is based on an in-depth technical-scientific investigation: using geopedological and forest ecology criteria, "it was possible to analyze the degradation of the soil and vegetation in the areas in question."
Over the years, the increasingly frequent use of hikers, and mountain bike enthusiasts in particular, "has unfortunately caused an excessive impact on the fragile environmental balance, resulting in a massive network of trails that expose the soil to channeled and widespread erosion. Although this unregulated use was legally legitimate until now, it nevertheless seemed essential to address the situation by imposing the restrictions on use governed by the new paragraph inserted in Article 5, in the hope of more effective protection of the area."
At the Devil's Saddle, bicycles can only be used on artificially surfaced roads and along the path, at least two metres wide, that connects the Sant'Elia lighthouse to the Sant'Ignazio fort.
The measure "aims to contain degradation processes and gradually restore the balance of compromised ecological and geopedological conditions , in order to preserve the residual functionality of the slopes and prevent further erosion and soil loss."
Violations of the provisions "are punishable by an administrative fine of 51 to 516 euros, with a fine of 102 if paid within 60 days of notification."
(Unioneonline/E.Fr.)