There are so many things wrong with the story titled New City Barricades Could Kill that appeared in the Yukon News last week. First of all, a realistic title please, something like: ATVs Could Kill.
If Cody Kelpin was driving his motorbike at such a “screaming” speed that he could not stop in time to avoid the barricade, then he wouldn’t have been able to avoid a tree recently blown across the trail either.
Worse, he could have seriously injured other users who were expecting the safety of a trail designated long ago as non-motorized.
And what about the neighbours who are routinely subjected to the “roar” of these machines near their homes.
There seems to be a lack of responsible adults in Cody’s life. Instead of blaming others, responsible adults would tell him that he could get his driver’s licence suspended for the dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, and have him pay for the city property that he damaged with his machine.
And how are these kids getting their ATVs from their homes to the trails? “They come up the street fast,” says a neighbour. Parents who give these machines to their kids in town are literally sending them to play in the traffic.
If the city is to blame at all in this case, it is for not having previously enforced its ATV bylaw. Applying the provisions for ATV confiscation to offenders who do this “all the time” would help to prevent such incidents.
Dorothy LeBel
Whitehorse