On 22/09/2017 9:47 AM, wrote:
Legislation to beef up penalties under the Highway Traffic
Act is to be proposed in Ontario: http://cyclingmagazine.ca/advocacy/o...bodily-injury/.

We'll see if it has any effect other than to produce tombstone reactions.
--
Andrew Chaplin
SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO



This has been in the news in Montreal. I'm not sure this is going
anywhere. Even if it's implemented it would need to be applied. Quebec
recently raised some of the fines for motorists injuring cyclists. For
example, the fine for dooring a cyclist went from $30 to #300. Last
year a woman opened a door and injured a cyclist. He was not only
injured but his bike was destroyed. The cops didn't ticket her. I
wrote to the police department complaining about this and they replied
that it's up to the discretion of the officer on the scene.

Not only does this woman get off with no fine whatsoever, but as a
result of the driver not being ticketed, the cyclist, who is a bike
messenger, can't get his bike repaired by the driver's liability
insurance. He has to go to small claims court to have his bike repaired.

I asked the police how this could be a question of the officer's
discretion but they replied that that was a decision made by the officer
on the scene and they would not discuss this except with the persons
involved.

So sure, it's a good thing to pass these laws. Maybe the press will
make people think more but unless they're actually implemented the
result will be minimal.