Yakima looks at requiring liability insurance for ATVs used on city streets [Yakima Herald-Republic, Wash.]

Jan. 19—A decision to allow all-terrain and utility-terrain vehicles on Yakima streets hasn't raised many issues, but police traffic Lt. Ira Cavin said drivers should be required to carry liability insurance.

The Yakima City Council passed an ordinance in 2021 allowing ATVs and UTVs to be driven on city streets where the speed limit is 35 mph or less.

Drivers must have a valid driver's license and follow the rules of the road, but Cavin told the Yakima City Council on Tuesday that drivers are not currently required to carry insurance.

"I think we need to work, perhaps, with city staff and legal staff and see if they can come back with an amendment to the ordinance that explicitly states that they have to carry liability insurance," Cavin said. "Because, obviously, they can cause a collision if they're on the roadway, just like anyone else."

The council directed staff to draft the change and bring it back for approval.

Cavin said that change is needed, but otherwise the decision to allow ATVs and UTVs on roads has been fine. While police in the traffic unit make educational traffic stops, they aren't seeing collisions or illegal activity, he said.

Collisions

Cavin said there was one notable pursuit and fatality collision involving side-by-side UTVs in 2022. Two men died in a UTV crash following a high-speed chase in October. Both men were wearing harness-style restraints but no helmets, according to Yakima police.

No other ATV or UTV collisions on public roads have been reported since the ordinance went into effect, Cavin said.

He noted that people operating the vehicles are at an increased risk of injury. Though UTVs handle like cars, the vehicles are not built to absorb the impact of a crash, Cavin said. There is a higher risk of injury for ATV or UTV drivers, even in low-speed collisions that might leave the driver of a standard vehicle uninjured, he said.

"That's on the operator of the UTV to make that decision to be on the road," he said.

Drivers are required to wear a helmet while the vehicles are in motion, except when the vehicle has seat belts, roll bars or an enclosed passenger compartment, per city code.

Traffic stops

Cavin said ATV and UTV traffic stops typically come from a situation where a UTV driver is on a road with a speed limit higher than 35 mph.

"Usually it's an educational contact," Cavin said.

Drivers might be unaware of the speed limitations for ATVs and UTVs and need to plan a different driving route, Cavin said. The drivers were usually in the West Valley, coming to or from home, he said.

Other stops have been made for noise disturbance, Cavin said.

"A lot of those UTVs have external speakers on them," he said. "A normal car has windows and doors and stuff to keep the music that they're listening to indoors. With those, in particular, they don't."

A map showing streets where ATVs or UTVs can be driven within city limits is available on the city's website.

Contact Kate Smith at katesmith@yakimaherald.com.

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