Canada Transport Minister Marc Garneau recently announced that he would create a task force to look into the putting seatbelts on school buses, and many local advocates feel this is the wrong approach.

“I do not see this as a victory,” comments Petra McGowan, a Ste. Anne resident who has quickly become a parent spokesperson on the issue. “This task force is the playbook move of a government who is trying to avoid something.”

McGowan is concerned that Garneau’s solution will be gathering a group of people together who all have a vested financial interest in maintaining the status quo when change is what is needed.

“I understand that retrofitting existing buses is a process that would be very lengthy,” admits McGowan, “but as for the new buses, they could have literally been signed off on and moved ahead.”

According to McGowan, the research from large organizations like the National Safety Council, and the National Transportation Safety Board clearly illustrate the benefits of seatbelts in protecting schoolchildren.

At the beginning of this year, McGowan began a Facebook page called Manitoba Parents for Mandatory Seatbelts that has largely contributed to her becoming a public figure on the subject.

“I’m glad that I have the capabilities to do this because there are a lot of well-meaning people out there who would like to take this on but do not have the same PR expertise.”

Still, with all of the media attention she has helped garner, McGowan feels heard, but not listened to.

“It feels like the typical political dance: nobody wants to take responsibility for anything.”

Though little is yet known about Garneau’s new task force, McGowan is buckled down for the worst. In the meantime, she says she is receiving an ever-increasing level of support from other provinces across Canada who agree with her mandate.

As the push for seatbelts on school buses continues to gain traction, McGowan says it has crossed her mind to change her Facebook group to “Canadian Parents for Mandatory Seatbelts” as children all across the country deserve to be safe traveling to and from school.