Alberta’s Transportation Minister Brian Mason has asked his department to look at ways of improving off-road vehicle safety, a move that couldn’t come soon enough, following the death of yet three more children this year, with 20 others hospitalized.
Some people will argue that more education is necessary to curb unsafe behavior and yes, education has a role to play. Take the case of cigarette smoking, with the prevalence rate dropping from 27 per cent of Canadian youth smoking in 1985, to 11 per cent in 2012, according to Health Canada, corresponding with the push to educate young people on the dangers of nicotine addiction and tobacco use.
However, education is only a starting point. Already, there are several groups and agencies, as well as dealers, that support education on ATVs. But having attended such safety lessons, only to hear a minority of youths express ambivalence and shrug their shoulders, suggests no amount of education may be enough for some people to change their behaviours.
The Alberta Off-Highway Vehicle Association supports mandatory helmet legislation – the lack of movement on the issue is due to politics, not common sense. Other areas that need to be examined include potential age restrictions and mandatory driver training courses that stress safety while operating a high-powered machine.
The province also needs to consider whether it can enforce any laws established. Do people obey laws or bylaws that flouts their conventional beliefs or practices if they believe it is a toothless one? If the government decides to legislate for greater ATV safety, hopefully it will also consider how it will enforce any new rules it brings forward.
