Re: Summer dog bylaws in effect (News, June 1)
In this article about dogs being illegally off-leash we learn that “officers will be out monitoring” and that they will be “handing out $100 fines to anyone caught breaching the bylaw.” No one is going to disagree with that initiative.
However, one must wonder why Saanich doesn’t have a broader perspective concerning bylaw enforcement in our parks and on our trails. We have many pedestrian-only trails that are constantly encroached upon by cyclists who present a danger to everyone from toddlers to seniors.
Why does Saanich not monitor and hand out $100 fines to cyclists in violation of bylaws meant to protect pedestrians?
Perhaps Saanich has forgotten what happens when a cyclist collides with a pedestrian – such as the elderly Victoria woman, who was hospitalized for four days after such an incident. The cyclist left her with injuries including broken teeth, heavy bruising on her face, neck, head and chest, cuts on her upper lip requiring stitches and broken cheekbones that required plastic surgery.
Or the Vancouver seawall incident where an adult cyclist hit a four-year-old girl, breaking two bones of one of her legs below the knee. He hit her so hard that he actually fell from his bike.
Perhaps Saanich council should start getting serious about pedestrian safety on trails.
Douglas Inglis
Saanich