ATVs?

[cowman]

In my municipality, the ASB recently recommended to council that ATVs, used for agricultural purposes, should be allowed on county roads. Apparently the present bylaw does not allow this?
The province already allows ATVs(agriculture) to use provincial roads? So do several other rural municipalities around this one.
So what happens?
Council apparently is not too keen on the idea! One councillor(Poth in Div.2) says it would create all kinds of problems with people trespassing!...He lives in a subdivision area, so maybe understandable?
The real shocker was this: The councillor for Division 5(Lougheed) came out very strongly against it...and he is the chair of the ABS that recommended the relaxation of the bylaw! He claimed every Tom, Dick and Harry would be out riding and it would be a nightmare for the cops!
Now I would say to either of these gentlemen....Are you guys sure you've ever been out in the country? Come on...? Have you never seen the hundreds of surveyors driving quads on just about every road? Or farmers driving cattle, or checking out their crops! Or the local fertilizer dealer crop scouting or taking soil samples? Get real!
Do they think the county cops are stupid? The cops do know the difference between people trying to do their job and little hellraisers out for fun!
But it really floored me that the chair of the ASB would be against the recommendation! Maybe he should resign his position on the board if he is totally in opposition to the majority? Maybe its a good thing we have four members at large on the ASB...so they can bring up things that affect the farmers in this county? Mr. Lougheed, you are just wrong on this issue.

[coppertop]

In some areas ATV's are a huge problem, the MD of Willowcreek has some issues with off road ATV.s tearing up grazing leases, leaving gates open etc.

In this area farmers can travel on the roadways from one property to the other as long as the travel is related to their agricultural business.
I was on council when we passed that law in the county, and for the most part people respect it, however there are lots of kids roaring around on ATV's at all hours of the night in this area, some of them are well under 14, and it is an accident waiting to happen, but the parents don't seem to care.

[cowman]

I wasn't arguing that every little bugger in the country should be able to do as he pleases on a quad?
The point here was "legitimate agricultural use"?
I know the head county cop quite well and because I am occasionally on the roads doing legitimate work, with a quad, I asked him what the deal was? He told me "Yes it is illegal. No we won't enforce it for legitimate work. And NO the RCMP will not enforce the bylaw for legitimate work."
So defacto, there already is a system in place...that bypasses the stupid law on the books! This is a typical example of "the real world" versus "the world of rules"?
One year ago some old stupid busybody tried to stir up things by complaining about all the oilfield surveyors running the roads on quads! The county cops were actually kind of in a bind because the law said one thing...and common sense said another! They chose to become "blind" at the right moments!
This bylaw is stupid. Maybe the case could be made to keep horses off the roads? I guess you could consider them an All Terrain Vehicle!
When you have a stupid law in place...you should change it. Not because it was really a problem but because you get some idiot halfwit causing problems because they aren't in the "real world"!

[coppertop]

In our county's case we got a legal opinion on the wording of the by-law. It, as all other by-laws was debated in public and the public had input. What we came up with is what the majority of the public were comfortable with, including agricultural operators and resource industry. The intent was to allow legitimate users of ATV's the right to use them on the public roadways for necessary use, not for recreational use, and certainly not for racing up and down the roads in the middle of the night.

[cakadu]

The other part of the argument that you have not stated cowman was the fact that if indeed there was somebody riding on a quad that was clearly NOT engaged in an agricultural endeavour, the culprit could take off across country and the police officer could not necessarily stop them.

The ASB does not make the by-laws, rather they would make recommendations that council would then use to make the by-laws.

Quite frankly, with the number of acreages out here and those riding on quads, dirt bikes etc. that in no way, shape or form are being used for ag purposes, I can support not changing it. There is one young fellow in particular who has a dirt bike that doesn't run properly and he revs the heck out of it when he's riding it - not fun to listen to as he's roaring up and down the road.

In many cases it is younger people on the quads and they wouldn't be going to check cows and I'm not sure what crop needs to be checked in the winter.

[dalek]

Come east folks. ATVs were always legal here for ag purposes, now most municipalities have decided to open the roads to ANYONE over 16 with an ATV. It's getting just ridiculous. Got a friend who found 4 strangers riding through her fields last summer, stopped them and said she was calling the police. Turned out 3 of them were off-duty police officers. Police won't hardly respond here to trespassing or ATV calls anymore

[cowman]

Anyone who chooses to break this particular law, can? And yes, without a doubt can avoid getting caught?
That wasn't the point. The point was: Change the law so legitimate operators are not in violation of the law? There is already a defacto "see no evil" in place by law enforcement? In other words: The cops are also breaking the law...and it is just a matter of time until some troublemaker stirs the pot up until something has to be done?
I think a police officer can tell that the farmer moving some cattle down the road...isn't out for a joy ride!
I would think the law Coppertops county passed would be sensible?
Do any of you see the irony of the ASB "recommending" this bylaw be changed and the chair of the ASB being the most vocal opponent in council?...He probably presented the proposal to council....and then stood up and opposed it! Do you find that strange?

[coppertop]

cowman, remember it is ELECTION YEAR, many councillors will use every single opportunity to grandstand for support in this fall's election !!

I attended a planning and development open house last night and heard one of our local council put on an academy award performance for the public.....and it wasn't even his division !!! Made me wonder if he is considering running for Reeve !!!

[cowman]

I e-mailed the Ag fieldman and my councillor about this and got this reply: Basically it is an enforcement issue. The system in place where the county patrol and RCMP basically look the other way is working and to change the bylaw would create a lot of enforcement problems! So its going to be wink-wink and nothing will be changed! The Ag fieldman agreed with me that it should be changed but he had to toe the line if that is what his bosses decided! I don't blame him...he is just doing his job!
I then phoned my councillor and told her I think they are making a big mistake that will probably come back to bite them? What happens the day somebody plows into one of these "invisible farm quads"? When the lawsuits get hot and heavy is this "little arrangement" going to come into court? How will the county cops answer that one? Its all in the records.
It sure is interesting that the county politicians knows more than the provincial government? I guess you have to haul the quad down the county road, while chasing those cows...and then when you get to the provincial highway you can jump on it and go? How much sense does that make?