Dear Editor,
On March 26 2024, the Listowel Banner contained a lengthy article describing a recent meeting of North Perth council. We were particularly interested in the discussions regarding a request from a local ATV group to use the trail from Listowel to Henfryn.
Several decades ago, after the railway tracks had been removed and the sewage line from Atwood to Listowel had been installed, the town of Listowel wisely decided to create and maintain this trail.
Their lofty and unselfish goal, for a minimal cost, was to improve the health and fitness of local families and their leashed pets. As frequent walkers and bike riders along this trail, we have been thrilled to see the number of quiet and relaxed trail users steadily increase. During those years we have encountered only a few dangerous situations – one involved a snow machine travelling at well over 80 km/h in the same direction as a walker.
The machine missed the walker by mere centimeters and did not stop. Another involved a belligerent male on an ATV.
After just missing a biker and admitting that legally his ATV was not allowed on the trail, he still felt that he had every right to be there.
In the very next issue of the Listowel Banner on April 4, 2024 Pauline Kerr’s Off the Record summarized several legal reasons why North Perth’s council should deny the request from the ATV group. Please take a few minutes to read her most interesting article.
We’d like to quote a critical portion of that article: “The responsible party has often been a municipality or other entity deemed to have ‘deep pockets.’ They may be deep, but the people whose property taxes fill those pockets are crying ‘foul’ over the skyrocketing insurance premiums passed along to them.”
We strongly believe that Pauline’s warning should be ample reason to reject the ATV group’s request. If this request is approved, there is little doubt that the number of exercising walkers and bike riders, for whom the trail was intended, will definitely decrease.
Sincerely,
Jim and Linda Schurter
Listowel
