Howard Greninger
The Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE —
Drivers of all terrain vehicles, or ATVs, cannot travel on county roads as the Vigo County board of commissioners on Tuesday unanimously agreed not to enact a county off-road vehicle ordinance.
“We have taken numerous calls [against this] and our concern is the enforcement that it would take if we put an ordinance in. When they buy an ATV, it clearly states that they are off-road vehicles,” Commissioner President Judith Anderson said.
“They keep taking more and more of the roadways. We have trails and bike paths, and I have nothing against them. Play toys have a place, but not on our roadways,” Anderson said.
“I wholeheartedly endorse what has been recommended,” Vigo County Sheriff Jon Marvel told commissioners. “I think anytime you put, and it could be a young kid on these four-wheelers, [ATVs] out in the road where cars are driving and trucks, you are inviting disaster.
“The law says they can ride along the easement if there is room enough. I think that is as far as this county should go,” the sheriff said.
State law allows the use of ATVs on a public right-of-way adjacent to a public road, except for a limited access highway, “if there is sufficient width to operate at a reasonable distance off and away from the traveled road, in a manner not to endanger life or property,” according to state law.
Marvel after the meeting said enforcement of such an ordinance would have been difficult. The sheriff said if an officer in a squad car attempted to pull over an ATV, the vehicle could simply be steered off-road and driven through a field.
“It is a very, very hard, difficult thing to try to enforce and at least this way, if they see us coming, they have to be off on the side of the road. To put them on the road would just be a big mistake,” Marvel said.
Sullivan, Parke, Vermillion and Clay counties each have off-road vehicle ordinances. Parke, Sullivan and Vermillion counties each have some requirements, such as time of day usage, plus an age limit and driver insurance, allowing the vehicles to travel on county roads.
Clay County is the most restrictive, aimed at keeping riders from simply traveling on county roads for fun. Clay County allows ATVs to travel on county roads only for specific predetermined destinations for hunting, fishing or agricultural purposes, and requires an operator to wear a helmet while traveling on a county road.
Richard O. Biggs, a Lost Creek Township resident, petitioned commissioners last month to enact a county off-road vehicle ordinance. Biggs presented a petition signed by 164 people.
“I don’t understand why they would not pass it,” Biggs said when contacted Tuesday. “I am disappointed, but I am not through with it. The people that signed that petition are also voters.”
Howard Greninger can be contacted at (812) 231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com.
