La Broquerie Council has retracted a bylaw change suggested in late September that would have allowed ATVs to drive on local roadways.

Two weeks ago, Council reviewed their new Traffic and Transportation Bylaw which amalgamates many smaller road-related bylaws, including the Off-Road Vehicle Act. At that time, Council felt that allowing quads to drive on local roads at speeds of under 30 km/hr would increase operator safety.

Read more: La Broquerie ATV Bylaw Becoming Less Strict

However, after Wednesday’s regular meeting of Council, Reeve Lewis Weiss says that sentiment changed entirely.

"The way things are looking right now, We’re not even allowed to make the changes we were planning on making," he comments.

Chief Administrative Officer Anne Burns had put some research into the proposed amendment and found that a piece of Provincial legislature called the Highway Traffic Act was in direct contradiction. She presented these findings to Council, who unanimously agreed to amend their amendment.

The Highway Traffic Act clearly states that no ATVs shall be allowed on provincial or municipal roads, indicates Burns, and so that is how it will be in La Broquerie.

In addition to its divergence from provincial regulations, Weiss says the change had also been met with surprising backlash from La Broquerie residents. Council received a delegation, during their meeting, of people made upset by the potential allowance of ATVs on local roadways.

“There was a lot of negative reaction to that idea,” states Weiss, “and ratepayers shared some disturbing stories on incidents that have happened recently.”

These residents were pleased to see Council double-back on their initial perspective.

As of Wednesday, Council again tabled the second and third reading of the Traffic and Transportation Bylaw to ensure similar errors are avoided.

In the meantime, Burns stresses that ATVs are not allowed to travel along La Broquerie roadways, nor will they be allowed to in the future.