I was watching the news this morning and saw a story about a man in Fredericton who is going to jail for 5 days due to tickets he got for skateboarding.
Skateboarding is apparently illegal in NB according to bi-law and this is the mode of transportation he uses to get to school/work etc. He’s trying to do the green thing and gets around much better on his board then taking his car etc.
He refused to pay the ticket so therefore is going to jail….I wouldn’t pay the damn thing either…Since when did skateboarding become THAT much of an issue that NB needed to make it illegal….Gimmie a FREAKING break…I think some MLA’s have a little too much time on their hands!!
This article appears in May 15-21, 2008.
I saw that one too, pretty ridiculous. I guess he never paid the first ticket from last year, so they doubled it and he goes to jail if he doesn’t pay. Same guy also runs a gas free lawn care service (although I’m assuming they drive to the actual house, then use a reel mower. Those work great if you keep them sharp, and have a reasonably flat lawn. Lawnmowers are horrible polluters. two stroke straight exhaust, sweet.)Incidentally, it’s bylaw. Just fyi.
LOL Pete…I should have posted I know I made errors this morning when I was typing it up but I was on a rant about something else I didn’t even care LOL….I forget to mention that in this bitch!!
Freddytown is pretty on the outside and downright narrowminded on the inside.
That’s the way things are, you are told to go green because it is better and then what? You get fucked. Look at NS, go buy energy efficient appliances, CFL’s, low-flow toilets. You already bought these? Too bad, you don’t qualify for a rebate. Rod: “Now we’re going to add the PST to NSP bills again, unless you use more than 27Wh/day”; translation: Corporations will get a tax break while the public will foot the bill.
Jenn, learn a bit about how bylaws are development and you;ll discover this law is not spread across NB – it’s a municipal bylaw meaning it applies in that city, in this case its Fredericton. Most other cities and towns have some sort of skateboarding regulations and I can understand F’ton’s idea since they have some of the worst drivers I’ve ever been around and they probably don’t need the public works crews peeling some skater off the pavement.
Wow that is crazy, I had no idea it was illegal. Its stupid, especially since he was hurting no one. Just another person the government wanted to make an example of, and also shows that our hard earned tax dollars go to paying the stupid F**ks that charged him.
Ex….does it really matter where it is? Thats stupid….because the drivers are horrible there? Well maybe they should make the law so that it is a little harder to get your license then to ban skateboarders.
Elle Elle, its not my place to say its a stupid law since I don’t live there and city council decisions don’t affect me. Every municipality has bylaws that someone will find stupid but I have no issues with a law that makes it clear that roads are for licensed motor vehicles and bicycles and that sidewalks are for pedestrians. Next thing the guy will want to skateboard down the middle of the TransCanada highway and we should have to tolerate that? I think not.
All this aside, pedal bikes have steering and brakes. skateboards have no brakes and limited capacity for steering. How many times have I had to jam on my brakes because some dumbass was on a skate board in the middle of the road or decided it was ok to just run a red light. I don’t paint every skater/rollerblader etc with the same brush and yes I’ve had to lock up my brakes for pedestrians, cyclists, dogs, other cars etc . These are great forms of exercise etc;BUT I don’t think anything should be allowed on the road with traffic if it can’t keep up a reasonable pace and have the ability to stop or maneuver
I don’t think it’s safety issues at all, they just want to make money. Why is it hard for everyone to realize that Government in Canada, not just NB, does nothing but take money from people? If it was safety concerns, cyclists wouldn’t be on the roads either. It’s easier to avoid a skateboarder than it is a cyclist. A skateboarder can easily just jump of his board and get away from a dangerous situation, it’s not as easy for a cyclist. He/She will get injured, if not by the driver, by the bike itself! It’s probably a by-law everywhere else, they just never enforce it. That dude in Freddy probably decided to skateboard just before an a-hole cop got off his late night shift, so the cop decided to meet his quota and gave him a ticket. Nothing more nothing less. Just a cop who doesn’t like his/her job or just power tripping really is what’s about! And it’s probably the same cops that actually gave him the tickets.
Also, with some of the attitude on here, people actually agreeing with the tickets and the by-law, is the reason nothing will ever change in this country!
I dunno, whats a person on a skateboard gonna do at 25 km /hr +; which is not unrealistic on a good down hill Jump off? I don’t think they will just walk away or jump out of the way it’ll be more of a jump off and roll right into whatever they were trying to avoid.However, I do agree, I think the government is trying to get its hand in our pockets wherever and whenever it can
Ex….why is it safer for a bike to go down the road then it is a board?? Same helmets?? So it’s ok for crazy out of control drivers to kill someone on a bike but not a board….
Jenn – Cyclists are supposed to follow the rules of the road just like automobiles and that contributes to their safety while sharing the roads. Skateboarders using handsignals and stopping at lights and stop signs? Nah, won’t happen, so keep em off the roads. I could bring up the question of what a skateboarder will end up doing at a stop sign at the bottom of a steep hill. Brake like a car or bike?
Skateboarding is not a crime. I agree with Jenn. There’s really no difference between the potential for a skateboarder to learn hand signals and the ability of a bike rider to use them and most don’t bother. It’s just not going to happen because the highway is an inappropriate place for both of them. Neither skateboarders nor bike riders need obtain a license and prove their knowledge of the highway traffic act and should therefore be invited to stay on designated pathways. Oh, no pathways? Now that’s a municipal issue!