Whitehorse is looking for public input into the city’s new traffic bylaw.
The last bylaw was made in 1982, and much has changed since then, said Dave Pruden, manager of bylaw services.
Most of the tickets bylaw officers hand out are for people parking too long in two-hour zones or for parking meters, he said. Fees for those infractions won’t be changing, he said.
But rules around parking downtown will tighten. Under the new bylaw, people would have to leave downtown for two hours before moving from one two-hour parking space to another. The new bylaw would also give residential parking permits to people whose homes border two-hour parking zones downtown. That would mean these residents wouldn’t have to move their vehicles every two hours.
There would also be changes for bigger violations, like failing to stop at a stop sign or not obeying a flag person. People who park too close to a fire hydrant only pay $25 now. Under the new bylaw, it would cost $250.
The new bylaw would also require drivers to yield to transit buses. And it would give bylaw officers the ability to issue tickets to people who park in transit spots at Yukon College or Whitehorse General Hospital.
And agencies that work with the disabled would be able to apply for accessible parking permits. Now, such permits are only issued to people, not vehicles.
The public input session ends on April 3. Citizens can email bylawservices@whitehorse.ca or send comments by letter.
(Meagan Gillmore)