Ban ATVs, dirtbikes from trail, residents plead

Residents along part of Conception Bay are campaigning to have dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles banned from a popular walking trail that winds by their homes.

The Conception Bay South portion of the T'Railway — built across Newfoundland on the bed of the former railway, after it closed in the late 1980s — should be limited in residential areas to pedestrian traffic, said Bill Cox, who lives in the neighbourhood of Manuels.

"It's almost like you're living in a combat zone," Cox said, describing the noise he and his neighbours often encounter.

"Dirt bikes, you name it — anything that has wheels, that's motorized is going through here, 24-7, 365 days a year."

Cox and other residents have been complaining to the town council for years.

Coun. Ken George said the C.B.S. town council wants to find a solution that will work for the town as a whole.

"Pedestrians are walking the track on a summer day and there's traffic going at excessive speeds, creating dust and a real danger from flying rocks and the vehicles themselves, [which are] usually driven by underage operators," George said.

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary polices the area for abuse of the trail, but Sgt. Paul Murphy says that's easier said than done.

"It's not easy to stop," said Murphy, who adds the police will use ATVs of their own on occasion.

"We try to get them out as often as we can but to chase people on two-wheelers and three-wheelers and four-wheelers is very dangerous," he said.

The town council is collaborating with the Newfoundland and Labrador government on a new study on how a 22-kilometre stretch of the T'Railway should be used.

George says that while a regional ATV association has conducted education campaigns, "That's long term, and it hasn't worked … this study hopefully will lead us in the right direction."

George, who said the status quo is not working for the town council, pointed out that only a minority of users misuse the trail.

"The T'Railway can be one of the greatest assets for this town, and right now it's one of the greatest headaches," George said.