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June 18, 2018 - 11:45 AM
KAMLOOPS - City council will be looking to amend the current idling restriction bylaw to include all motor vehicles in an effort to reduce the city's environmental impact.
In a report prepared for council's regular meeting tomorrow, June 19, city council will be looking to authorize a proposed idling control amendment in the Good Neighbour Bylaw, which will prohibit all motor vehicles within city boundaries from idling for more than three consecutive minutes when the vehicle is not moving. The current idling restrictions only apply to commercial vehicles in residential areas.
The bylaw consideration has been in works since May 8, when council directed city staff to bring a report forward regarding the city’s existing idling restrictions.
Around 75 per cent of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions originate from passenger cars, SUVs, trucks, and recreational vehicles, the report says. The proposed bylaw amendment would also help prevent the waste of non-renewable resources.
“If Canadian motorists avoided unnecessary idling for just three minutes every day of the year, it would prevent the waste of 630 million litres of fuel,” the report says.
Council has allocated $20,000 from the Climate Action Fund Reserve to develop an idling reduction community engagement campaign.
As for bylaw enforcement, offenses related to idling would be subject to a $100 fine.
Other benefits of the bylaw, as stated in the report, include a reduction in noise pollution, and air pollution which can cause health problems in young and elderly people with lung or heart conditions.
The proposed bylaw amendment would also include a list of exceptions that would allow idling in situations where it would be necessary for an engine to be running when the vehicle is not in motion including emergencies, traffic conditions or mechanical difficulties where the driver has no control.
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