By Angela Brown

Town to lobby for registration of ATV’s to assist in preventing property damage

Oct 16, 2018 | 2:00 PM

Battleford residents frustrated with ATVs plowing through their property will be glad to know the town hopes to put the skids on this kind of activity.

Council members agreed to have the town submit a resolution to the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) to partner with the Saskatchewan All-Terrain Vehicle Association to lobby the provincial government to create an effective registration process for ATVs.

If the resolution is passed, SUMA would be able to propose the province and Saskatchewan Government Insurance require ATVs be licensed and have plates affixed to vehicles, so drivers can be held accountable for any property damage they cause.

“We have a continual problem with ATVs driving up and down our roads, and tearing up and wrecking our trails,” Mayor Ames Leslie said. “Today the only way to enforce it is if a resident or complainant has a video of the ATV and submits it to the RCMP.”

Leslie said if ATVs were registered, the RCMP would be able to readily identify and charge drivers for infractions.

The mayor added when ATVs drive through the town, not only is it illegal to do so, but it also becomes both a property and a safety concern.

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“I don’t think that’s safe for our residents,” he said. “I do get more complaints about ATVs than crime in our community.”

Leslie said the process would be the same as registering a snowmobile with the province.

The mayor added while people need insurance to drive their ATVs on any public streets or roads, there is no way to enforce that. As a result, in the event of an incident or mishap involving an ATV it can be difficult to prove liability.

Chief Administrative Officer John Enns-Wind said in his written report riders drive their ATVs everywhere in Battleford — across public roads, across the North Saskatchewan River Truss Bridges, as well as along the North Saskatchewan River banks and sandbars, along Battle River.

“The operation of ATVs within the Town of Battleford is unsafe and illegal,” he said. “The use of ATVs on public lands in and around the Battleford hampers the enjoyment of public lands, such as Finlayson Island, and the Trans-Canada Trail, by residents and visitors to Battleford.”

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow

by Angela Brown

Town to lobby for registration of ATV’s to assist in preventing property damage

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