The Manitoba authorities has fashioned a brand new committee targeted on motorcyclist security, created after a Manitoba man died in a 2022 crash.
Justice Minister Matt Wiebe outlined the committee’s goals to gathering of roughly 60 motorcyclists Saturday. The group was marking the start of motorbike security consciousness month.
“We’re going to start out taking motion, and we’re going to start out making a distinction,” stated Wiebe.
Authorities and the Coalition of Manitoba Bike Teams, together with representatives from agriculture and regulation enforcement sectors, held their first assembly Could 2.
The working group will develop a street security technique and create varied initiatives to cut back collision frequency and severity on Manitoba highways, Wiebe added.
Committee members will evaluation deadly and severe harm collisions involving bikes, he continued.
“It’s all the time superb to me when out of tragedy, we will discuss options,” stated Wiebe in a speech. “We will discuss methods to enhance the protection for others.”
Lise Léveillé was within the crowd, holding a poster of her late husband, Denis L’Heureux.
In 2022, L’Heureux was thrown off his motorbike after sliding on moist mud protecting a piece of Provincial Street 311, northeast of Steinbach. L’Heureux then hit an oncoming pickup truck.
Final month, Manitoba Public Insurance coverage filed a lawsuit in opposition to a dairy producer, alleging it’s answerable for damages in L’Heureux’s collision (which additionally broken 5 bikes driving with him). Pennwood Dairy’s proprietor or worker left mud by driving farm equipment on the freeway, the lawsuit asserts.
Since L’Heureux’s dying, Léveillé and different members of the motorbike group have been advocating for security enhancements on Manitoba roads.
“The loss continues to be so nice,” stated Léveillé. “We simply need to make change for different folks in order that they don’t should expertise the identical grief.”
She expressed pleasure for the brand new committee and concerned “in any approach.”
Léveillé is hoping farmers erect signage marking soiled roads and clear their particles on highways this summer time.
“Some individuals are actually conscious… some folks should be mandated for that,” Léveillé acknowledged, underscoring it’s “not bikers in opposition to farmers.”
The brand new committee will reconvene in June, in line with Doug Houghton, a director of the Coalition of Manitoba Bike Teams.
“We had an excellent begin,” stated Houghton. “Principally, we’re prevention and mitigation fairly than prosecution.”
Houghton stated members will first resolve what they will change beneath present laws after which resolve if legal guidelines must be altered.
He’s hoping for extra signage to alert motorists of mud and different particles.
“Folks don’t notice how simple it’s to create obstructions which can be extra harmful to motorcyclists than they’re for automobiles,” stated Houghton. “It might be a bit of two by 4 laying on the freeway that would throw you off the street.”
Claude Plante and James Chychota attended the gathering exterior the Manitoba Legislative Constructing Saturday. The bikers their relayed experiences of being rear-ended and side-swiped by autos.
“Folks simply aren’t paying consideration,” stated Plante with a shrug.
Nonetheless, motorbike collisions aren’t the norm, the pair famous. They love the “free spirit” of driving.
Using safely and predictably is essential, Chychota stated.
Representatives of the Winnipeg Police Service, Manitoba Public Insurance coverage and Security Providers Manitoba additionally spoke on the Saturday occasion.
gabrielle.piche@freepress.mb.ca
Gabrielle Piché
Reporter
Gabby is an enormous fan of individuals, writing and studying. She graduated from Purple River Faculty’s Artistic Communications program within the spring of 2020.
