Province to look at mandatory training for ATV drivers

Theminister responsible for SGIsays his government will look at mandatory education for ATV drivers. But he made no promises and is ruling out mandatory registration at the moment.

In an interview with CBC, DonMcMorrisexpressed his sympathy to the family of the latest person to die in an ATV incident.

A 14-year-old girl died after a rollover in Hudson Bay on the Labour Day weekend, becoming thefifth person to die in an ATV incident this year.

"It's awful to hear and see and we wish that these of course, as everybody does in the province, would never happen. We also realise that people are going to be out with ATVs, they've changed an awful lot from where they were a number of years ago. They're stronger and heavier and faster," he said.

Currently in Saskatchewan, ATV drivers between the ages of 12 and 15 have to take a course if they want to drive the vehicle,unless they are supervised by their parents.

There were renewed calls for mandatory training following thedeath of a 20-year-old man in an ATV incident earlier this summer.

"We want to make sure that people understand all the dynamics of that machine," JohnMeed, the general manager of theSaskatchewan ATV Association,said at the time. "How to climb a hill properly, how to descend a hill, how to avoid things, how to read the land, how to understand what equipment is necessary."

• Mandatory ATV training needed, group says

Will considerramifications

Minister McMorrissaid his government is not against mandatory training, but theyneedto look at all of the ramifications first.

He referred to snowmobile training and said it took place over a number of years and included a grandfather clause.

"That's something(ATV training)that we'd be certainly interested in looking at, but to say that we could suddenly flip a switch and say that we could make it mandatory across the province is unrealistic."

McMorris saidconcernsinclude finding enough trainers, ensuring it's accessible around the province, and deciding on anapproved course.

"All of these things, if we decided to move on it, would have to be looked at."

When it comes to licensing, McMorris said the government is reluctant to look at registration of vehicles.

He said it comes down to the fact that so much riding happens off-road.

"Because a person has a plate on the back of their ATV doesn't necessarily mean they're safer. It's the education piece, that if we were to move, we would want to move on."