Francis Devine

All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) Committee Meeting

Minutes July 24, 2014

Draft

Day / Date: Thursday, July 24,2014

Time: 7:00 PM

Location: Town Office

 Attendees:   Committee Members – Don Patch, Bruce Turco, Tim Martin, and Francis DeVine. David Burnor

 Other Attendees: Don Richardson, Ron Unterman, Rhonda Rivers, Paul Warren, and Rick Weintraub

Tim Martin called the meeting to order at 7:07 PM.

The committee reviewed and approved the minutes from the June 26, meeting (attached).

 Don Patch led off the discussion by describing his efforts to obtain statistics on ATV accidents in Mount Holly.  He had followed up an earlier request to Mt. Holly Rescue Squad for statistics, but was told that they had not had the opportunity to look yet.  The constable advised that he only receives 2 - 3 complaints a year and has not issued any tickets. He also contacted the Agency of Transportation (AOT) who sent a listing of accidents for the region.  Don pointed out that there were duplicate entries of incidents and overall there were only limited numbers of accidents, even though ATVs currently ride on the roads albeit illegally. 

 Don Richardson requested that those wanting to speak should raise there hand and be recognized by the chair before speaking.

 Bruce Turco talked about the illegal use of the roads by ATVs right now and the lack of complaints being filed.  It was generally agreed that most people don’t realize they should be filing complaints, if not for any other reason than to have a record of the number of illegal incidents.  Turco also stated that it has been going on for years.

 Rick Weintraub expressed concern as a taxpayer that the town could be opening itself up to costly litigation that could fall back on all property owners.  Don Patch had asked the Vermont League of City and Towns (VLCT) what experience other towns may have had.  He had not received a reply.

 It was suggested that we should ask the town attorney or some other specialists for an opinion.  This led to a back and forth discussion on the likelihood that the town carries any liability if they approve the opening of roads under the act. Ron Unterman pointed out that people always have the right to sue and by checking with our lawyers we may be able to create a firewall for the town against this type of action.  Turco reiterated the belief that the governing ordinance lifts the liability from the town.   Then a number of scenarios were sited and discussed without reaching a firm conclusion. Don Richardson suggested that a motion be made to end the liability discussion.  Patch made the motion seconded by Martin and passed unanimously.

 Don Burnor described his experience riding ATVs in Stockbridge and how well that worked.  According to him there have been no complaints and ATVs play an active role in Green Up Day.

 Turco explained how he had tried to compile a list of towns that allow ATVs on the roads.  The information he had, had outdated names and was not very useful. He also had a list of the towns and their town office phone numbers on it. This would be the starting point for tracking down an ATV contact.  The committee decided there would be little benefit in trying to contact these towns now.  No further action was taken (attached).

 Don Richardson, as a point of information, informed the committee that neither Ludlow nor Shrewsbury allows ATVs on their roads.

 Rhonda Rivers brought up the recent accident in Springfield involving two 14 Year olds riding ATVs side by side on a road.  A car coming from the opposite direction did not see them until the last moment, swerved to avoid them, but still hit one of the ATVs. The victim had to be helicoptered to Dartmouth Hitchcock.  Rhonda expressed concern about unsupervised youth being on the road and the impact an accident like this has on the driver of the vehicle.

 Turco explained that if the roads were opened to ATVs, they and the general public would have to be educated as to the rules governing road use and how to file complaints.  He also stated that other users of the road face risks.  He mentioned a bicyclist, who was killed on the road recently.

 Don Patch then presented a new draft of the proposed ordinance and discussed changes he had made to it.

 The major change was to remove the proposed committee structure and replace it with a single ATV Liaison.  A primary reason for doing this was to avoid the cumbersome nature of the committee, especially with the recent changes to the States Open Meeting Law.  In its place would be a Liaison responsible for receiving and processing road opening applications, presenting them to the Select Board for consideration and approval, and to be another point to hear complaints.

DeVine expressed concern with this type of structure instead of a committee.  He suggested that a four-person committee with two ATV users and two non-ATV users on it was a better way to do this.  His reasoning was that non-ATV users in town would feel that their concerns would be fairly heard and represented with this type of structure.  Weintraub suggested having two liaisons, one AVT user and the other a non-ATV user, so that different groups in town would feel better represented.

 Patch also added a Severability clause to the ordinance and added some administrative language covering the adoption history. 

 Weintraub questioned the actual approval process for opening roads. Then expressed strong concern for road maintenance.  Many Class 4 roads in town are privately maintained and he wanted to know if the town would provide maintenance if the road was opened to ATVs.  This led to a discussion concerning whether or not ATVs require permission to ride on Class 4 roads at all. The discussion was left unresolved.

 Untermann asked if ATVs would be allowed on paved roads.  The ordinance, as currently structured, does not prohibit the use of paved roads.  DeVine expressed strong concern and noted that many people responding to the survey might be willing to allow limited use of unpaved roads, but were opposed to opening paved roads.

Patch suggested that we were not going to resolve the various issues and that the Select Board had requested the committee draft an ordinance.  He proposed, that recognizing where the committee was in their work, submit what was currently in hand (see attached).

 DeVine expressed concern that the liaison structure was not satisfactory, that paved roads should be excluded, and that further work on enforcement of the ordinance was needed.

 The committee proceeded to a motion by Patch to present the ordinance as is to the board, but with three recommendations. 1) open a couple of roads, 2) for a 1 year trial, 3) no paved roads.

 Patch made the motion, seconded by Turco.  Voting for: Turco, Martin, Burnor and Patch.  Against: DeVine.  Motion passed.

 A motion to adjourn was made and the meeting ended at 8:57PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Francis DeVine Jr.