All-terrain vehicle (ATV) associations across BC are pleading a case to the provincial government to change a rule about driving on crown roads.
According to the Off-Road Vehicle Act, all riders are required to obtain specific permits, register their vehicle through ICBC, and receive RCMP permission at times, in order to cross certain provincial roads, including highways.
Instead, clubs with the Quad Riders Association of BC (ATVBC), are suggesting a single permit allowing riders to cross and drive on all roads instead of having to obtain multiple.
The Ridge-Riders ATV Club (Prince George West) is one of the ATVBC members and its President is Gordon Owen.
He says enabling this change within the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George (RDFFG) could create a potential tourism boost.
“It’s a tremendous market out there if people could drive from 100 Mile House up to Prince George on the off roads. They can do that in most cases on Forest Service Roads, but there are gazetted roads and that’s illegal to use those. That’s the portion that were hoping that’s going to come through; it could also people in Prince George to travel and go riding and even run down a City street.”
He says this has been a case for local riders since the Act’s legislation in 2014, including the nearly 50-member Ridge-Riders Club.
Owen describes his experience of ATVing through the Southwest United States, one of many regions that have gone through the implementation process.
“Down in Arizona, they have three classifications in which you can freely ride an ATV or an off-road vehicle. You can go on public lands, there are a few of public roads to ride on, and the third one is you can ride them downtown. I’ve seen four-by-fours driving with ATV’s side-by-side going to the shopping centre or stopping for gas. The one thing they can’t do is go on the freeway or interstate.”
He adds the Northern capital is home to hundreds of ATV and UTV owners, including more than 300 with the Prince George ATV Club, wanting to freely share the roads.
“I think more ATVers are hopeful that this will come down the pipe and be implemented in the future, in that we will be able to go on gazetted roads, which are roads registered with crown that you have to have a registered vehicle on.”
For now, the closest off-road trail experience for Prince George is on Tabor Mountain, which the two local clubs are hoping to build on in the months ahead.
According to PG ATV Club member Jeff Mohr, a fundraiser is scheduled for June 10th at the mountain, with proceeds going to trail expansion.
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