Alberta’s transportation minister proposed amendments to the Traffic Safety Act that would make it mandatory for users of ATVs to wear helmets while riding on public land.
According to the Injury Prevention Centre, an average of about 19 people are killed in Alberta each year while operating Off-Highway Vehicles (OHVs) – between 2002 and 2013, 185 people were killed while riding ATVs, and 40 percent of those people, or 74, died from head injuries, and 80 percent of those fatalities involved people who were not wearing helmets.
The amendment would also apply to those using snowmobiles, dirt bikes and the like – it was proposed after Government of Alberta officials consulted with Albertans and stakeholders in September 2016.
More than 2,200 Albertans shared their feedback, and the majority of respondents (65 percent) said helmets should be required for every one using OHVs.
If the amendments are passed, the province said they wouldn’t require the use of helmets for farm or ranch work, operations on farms and ranches would still be exempt under the Occupational Health and Safety Code.
Plus, the proposed amendments specifically exempt private property, consistent with OHV laws under the Traffic Safety Act. First Nations and Metis Settlement lands would also be exempt.
