Lots of interest in road trail network for ATVs in Queens County

More than 150 people turned out on Tuesday evening to learn about how proposed new routes for off-highway vehicles could affect Liverpool motorists, residents and businesses.

The public consultation was organized by the Queens County ATV Association at the Liverpool Fire Hall.

“So what we’re looking to do is to provide connection for off-highway vehicle users to be able to get into our commercial districts to access our restaurants, our gas stations and our accommodations, as well as to provide trail-to-trail connections,” Dave White, president of the ATV association, told QCCR on Tuesday.

“So what we’re trying to do in the larger picture is have 100 per cent connection from Lunenburg through Queens County to Shelburne. And the even bigger picture is for an eventual development of a path that would see people be able to leave Tantallon, go all the way down to Yarmouth, around to Digby, over to Middleton, back across New Germany and back up to Tantallon, which would be a route that would be very similar, actually I think a little bit bigger than one that everybody travels to Newfoundland to do.

“So this provides a massive opportunity for recreational development and also for economic development because we know from the 2022 spending survey that $454 million got spent that year by off-highway vehicle users in Nova Scotia. So part of our hope is that we can start to see our county start to recognize some of that economic growth too.”

The ATV association and the Queens Rails to Trails Association have proposed five areas around Liverpool to connect existing off-road trails with municipal roadways so that riders can access services or other trails.

The Nova Scotia government passed the Road Trails Act in 2023, which allows OHVs on provincial and municipal roads with certain conditions.

Five information stations were set up at the fire hall on Tuesday with volunteers at each to explain the routes and the laws around off-highway vehicle use on public roads.

People were asked to fill out feedback forms to say whether they oppose or support each route.

“We’ve had only positive feedback tonight that I’m aware of,” White said.

“We have had some questions about what the rules are. So there are speed limits, you do have to have a drivers licence, you have to be insured, you have to have your headlights on even during daylight hours. The times are restricted to daylight hours. So there are lots of rules that cover it.”

Brianna Darton and Erich Gennette traveled from Mount Uniacke to find out what it’s all about. Darton’s parents live in Liverpool.

“We’re kind of in the process of introducing my parents to the world of ATVing and if we can make things a little more convenient for them I think that would be a good start,” Darton said.

“I think it would be a great thing for them to do as they head into retirement and any encouragement with ease of access (and) they’re afraid of breaking the rules. They don’t want to drive where they shouldn’t.”

“At the moment really all we can do,” Gennette said, “is go from the No. 3 (highway) to Bridgewater and it would be really nice to do more than that. We just did it today. We’ve seen it. We’d like to do something different. So if we could go through Liverpool and go down to Shelburne that would be cool and just see a new place because this is our first time going ATVing down here and we’d like to do it more often.”

Peter Lavender of Liverpool said he wanted to find out how the proposed routes would affect traffic going into downtown.

“I was concerned mainly about Bristol (Avenue), you know, the main part of town going through Main Street but apparently they avoided that. They’re going all the way around that so it’s looking pretty good.”

White says off-highway vehicle users love visiting other areas of the province and they want to be able to travel more easily through Queens County and invite others to visit too.

“Our interest isn’t just in having it, we want it done properly, safely and to encourage good use and good economic impact.”

White says the ATV groups will work with municipal staff to collect the results of the feedback from Tuesday’s session. Regional councillors have seemed supportive of the idea of a connected road trail network in Queens County.

They would have to create a new by-law to make it happen.

White says he hopes that process can be wrapped up by the end of the year.

In the meantime, residents can give their feedback in an online survey posted by the region on its Facebook page.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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