Alliance wants another look at bike helmet bill Rebecca Harris Friday

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Alliance wants another look at bike helmet bill

Rebecca Harris

Friday, November 26, 2004 - 12:00

Local News - It could soon be mandatory for everyone to wear a helmet while operating a bicycle, scooter, skateboard, in-line skates or roller-skates on a highway.

Bill 129 has already passed its second reading and public hearings are in the works to be set up so that the public can have their say.

One organization is speaking out loud and clear on the bill, or rather to lack of one.

David Hunt the President of the Velo Ontario Cycling Alliance is quite upset about Bill 129. He says that if the bill is passed the way it is written, it will frighten people off their bikes and back into their cars.

“It would be like me telling [someone] to drive a vehicle and that the only thing that was important was their seat belt,” says Mr. Hunt.

The explanatory notes of Bill 129 state, “ The bill amends the Highway Traffic Act to make it an offence for any person to use a skateboard, a scooter, in-line skates or roller skates on a highway without wearing a helmet. Parents and guardians of a person under the age of 16 years are also guilty of an offence if they authorize or knowingly permit the person to contravene this restriction. There is an exemption for a person who does not wear a helmet because to do so would interfere with his or her religious beliefs or practices.”

The bill goes on to state that if you are caught without wearing your helmet by a police officer, you must identify yourself and provide identification. The bill also allows the officer to arrest the offender without a warrant if they fail to comply.

Mr Hunt says that wearing a helmet or not wearing a helmet should not be the issue here. He argues that the bill on its own is not enough. He went on to add that there are three things he personally would add to the bill. He says he would add support for safe cycling courses in local school, which would allow children to learn the rules of the road and in turn reduce the amount of collisions. Students would also learn about the right equipment so if a collision did occur the injuries would be less extreme. Better enforcement laws need to be looked at and revised so they will be enforced, he says. Mr. Hunt says he feels the laws are not being enforced because it is too much of a hassle for the officer when there are more pressing matters to attend to.

The last thing Mr. Hunt would add to Bill 129 is better marketing and promotional plans. He feels the last law that involved helmets, “was not [promoted] to the extent they said they were going to do.”

Mr. Hunt’s says his biggest concern is that if Bill 129 is passed the way it is written now, it will give people the wrong idea about cycling. He says he feels cycling is an important part of life, not only for health reasons, but for the environment as well.

Mr. Hunt says his organization feels very strongly about this bill and hopes to be heard on the subject. He said that they are not going to go away. He urges the public to think about this bill and contact their provincial member of parliament and ask to be heard.

When this issue was brought to Kim Craitor, the MPP of Niagara Falls, Mr. Craitor stated that Bill 129 was not intended to scare anyone off of cycling, but is meant to make biking and other sports like it safer. The Bill is simply to protect the riders, he says.

Mr. Craitor is involved in the Head Injury Association and says, “ I have seen the effects of people not wearing a helmet,” adding that was why he did not vote against the bill.

Mr. Craitor said he believes there should be more to the bill and that he is keeping an open mind on the subject. When hearing some of things that could be added to the bill he simply said, “I will keep that in mind.” As for the enforcement MPP Craitor stated that it would be enforced the same way the other laws are being enforced.

Hearings are being planned, but as for time and location that information has not yet been announced.