wi reads

. signals

ANYBODY under the
age of 16 can hop into
@ car and not wear a
seat belt, however,
nobody is allowed to
drive a vehicle without
first ensuring that their
pre-16 passengers are
_ buckled up. Wordy, bu’
true. ;
North. Vancouver resident
Mary Kletchko was more than
happy to comply with .°
these laws (found in ~
“section . 217 ‘of the
~~ gnighty Motor Vehicle,
_. Act [MVA)}).” a
in... fact, | when.
Mary’s sister and fam-
ily came to town fora

ice. Visit, she first took her <2

car to a Mazda dealer

and had:an .anchor ©

bracket inszalled, free:

of; charge; for- her.
_ two-aitd-a-half-year-
" old niece’s car seat.

To her dismay, North
Shore Taxi told Mary that
their cabs were not equipped
with the anchor bolt required
for the toddler’s restraint sys-
tem and that such devices
were not required in taxis.
When the dispatcher suggest-
ed that Mary simply have the
child sit on someone’s lap, she
chose to loan her car to her
sister and pick it up from the
airport parking lot a few days
Jater.

Poor advice aside, North
Shore Taxi was perfectly cor-
rect.

In spite of, or because of,
the fact that taxis are consid-
ered to be 2 form of public
transit, they are exempt froma

‘ great many of our seat belt

laws.

New borns to 15-ycar-olds
don’t have to wear seat belts
when in a taxi-cab because
taxi drivers are not required to

Tether strap

“THE above graphic illusirates the.

Seat belt laws are’ -correct way to secure a chlid seat.

“” very® specific. when.
_ eferring to. “parents and
“+. guardians. and’

w=; these: laws when dealing, with
er

1: to.,at® least. 12 . full
pages of. the Motor: Vehicle

ations of Canada, -

n' 213 and then some.’
:. Mary’ was: unable to drive

her. guests back to the airport:
the'end of their visit and so_

; eir kids and :
* oAwards. There is a fair depth to

ensure that they do so (section

36.06(a) of the MVA and sec-
-ton 32:01 of ‘the
- Regulations).

B.C.

Seat belts must be worn by
anyone ‘over the age of 16
except, you ‘guessed it, taxi
drivers (travelling at less than

"70 km-h — hey, it could hap-

pen) oo
”. It’should -be noted that
“, there are a few: other people -
“exempt “from: seat-belt laws:

Drivers with a note from a -

‘doctor’ or the Superintendent

of Motor Vehicles; peace offi-

NEWS phois Cledy Goodman
ra standard ‘inmost .

cers and emergency vehicle
drivers in certain and specific
circumstances; bus drivers,
and for that matter, bus pas-
sengers.

Furthermore, and to
apparently ease the burdens of
the working stiff, seat belt
laws do not apply to anyone

Ws the most
_ and Tight now

“who is engaged in work
which requires him/her to
alight from and re-enter a
motor vehicle at frequent
intervals and who, while
engaged in that. work, does
not drive or travel in chat vehi-
cle at a speed exceeding 40
km-h (section 217(5)(c) of

©

2 year lease

its the new ¥-90 trom Suzuki and, rom the functionality of shit-on-the fy four wheel dive to the safely of dual airbags, - < -

side impact beams and four
power windows and door locks, cruise

_” and our famous Japanese quality and you'

~ 3 yeas/80,000 ken warranty and a comprehensive Roads

wheel anti-lock brakes, ifS turing up the heat this sum
control, an AM/FM stereo cassetie with 4
juve got some serious fun. And because every
de Assistance plan, you're guaranteed fat

easier to pick up an'X-90, Because right nov,

the MVA). Take note all you
couriers, pizza slingers and
parts drivers: Under 40 klicks!

Obviously Mary and. her
guests chose io go beyond
Jegal requirements and simply
acted in a safe manner bene-
fitting the toddler, for which
they have my undying grati-

(fun you can have
i's at the summer

’ per monthio

tude. Seat belts save lives,
folks, required or otherwise.
Thank-you kindly, Mary,

- for bringing to light this ele-

mentary safety issue. It may
interest you to know that
Sunshine Cabs in North
Vancouver report some of
their cars are equipped with
the appropriate anchor boits
and weal send one tc you —
or anyone — on request.
Be safe. ;

mer, Add these features to removable T-tops,

speakers, automatic free-wheeling hubs
X-90 comes witha”. |

ntastic value for your money. a

s, So stop by your Suzuki dealer and

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D.i.; insurance and applicable taxes not included. Participating dealer has conditions, details and end of lease purchase options and may lease tor fess. Cannot be combined with any other

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