ATV safety bill may have better chance next year

April Vitello

CHARLESTON -- This year's all-terrain vehicle safety bill died because it lacked safety measures, the House Roads and Transportation chairwoman said Thursday.

Chairwoman Lidella Hrutkay, D-Logan, said she left the measure off Tuesday's agenda because it was a mess when it arrived from the Senate last month.

The bill would have banned ATVs from all paved roads, while giving county and municipal authorities leeway in further regulating their use.

Hrutkay said committee members wanted to add several provisions: helmets for all riders, identification stickers for all vehicles and a minimum age for riders.

"We basically ran out of time to work the bill," Hrutkay said. "But I think it may have a very good chance next year."

Karen Coria, a lobbyist for the Specialty Vehicle Institute of America, which represents ATV manufacturers, said the Legislature has never been able to deal with all the issues at once.

"Those are all legitimate ATV issues and as much as I would have wanted to address each one of those this year, I have learned the Legislature won't pass in both bodies model legislation without serious debate," Coria said Thursday.

A 2004 ATV safety law bans ATVs from roads with a centerline or more than two lanes, which leaves open some 20,000 miles of unlined, country roads.

Last year, there were 45 ATVs death in West Virginia and 60 percent occurred on paved roads. The state set a record in 2006 when at least 54 people died in ATV-related accidents.

After similar legislation failed last year, Gov. Joe Manchin asked several state agencies to study the issue and make recommendations to curtail deaths and injuries.

The No. 1 recommendation was to further restrict ATVs on paved roads.

Coria said the main issue "is not about responsible riders, it is about reckless, irresponsible riders who put themselves in a position to be involved in accidents."

Coria, who has filed to run for the House in the 14th District, which represents portions of Mason and Putnam counties, said she will continue to push the importance of ATV safety, though that is not the only issue she hopes to address, if elected.

Source: http://www.herald-dispatch.com/homepage/x1487405467

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