Martensville City Council has endorsed the concept of ‘Direct Vision Standard’ (DVS) safety measures for heavy vehicles.
The goal is to greatly reduce the potential for pedestrians and cyclists to be injured or killed by large transport trucks and other heavy vehicles.
DVS regulations are currently in place in England and several other European countries, where heavy vehicles must be equipped with driver and passenger-side windows and doors that provide increased visibility; side and rear cameras; radar and ultrasonic sensors; recording systems and audible alarms.
While European vehicle manufacturers are re-tooling factories to accommodate the DVS standards in Europe, that’s not the case for vehicles sold into the North American market. It could be many years before DVS standards are phased in on this side of the Atlantic.
However, there are steps that can be taken to improve safety in the meantime, according to Tod Fox, the husband of Natasha Fox, a cyclist who was struck and killed by a concrete truck in Saskatoon in May, 2023.
Fox made a presentation to Martensville City Council on Tuesday, May 7, advocating for minimum requirements for large vehicles to improve sight lines. He had earlier made a presentation to Saskatoon City Council on the same topic.
During the May 7 council Martensville council meeting, Fox said the underlying issue is that drivers of heavy vehicles are not able to see pedestrians or cyclists who are in ‘blind spots’ close to the vehicle.
DVS technology also alerts pedestrians and cyclists to exercise caution when they are in those blind spots.
While vehicle standards fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government, Fox said the province and municipalities can take steps to retrofit and upgrade their own fleets of vehicles, and also push for higher standards for new vehicles.
At the May 7 council meeting, Fox urged Martensville council to:
* write a letter to lobby the provincial and federal governments to implement Direct Vision Standard for commercial vehicles;
* consider implementing technology in the existing City of Martensville fleet that would support DVS and also consider DVS-compliant vehicles when purchasing new equipment;
* install a piece of artwork in the community to bring attention to cyclist and pedestrian safety.
Those recommendations were endorsed by councillors earlier this month.
Council voted at a meeting on June 4 to have city administration draft a letter to senior levels of government urging the adoption of DVS standards.
In conjunction with the letter, the city will also be launching a pilot project later this year to have a city-owned vehicle equipped with upgraded safety standards similar to DVS.
Martensville Mayor Kent Muench said at the June 4 meeting that it is important for the city to show leadership in this area.
“We want the letter to say to the province and federal government that we’re trying this out, and you should too,” said Muench.
Council also voted to endorse the placement of a piece of metal artwork on 3rd Street North as part of the city’s ongoing ‘traffic-calming’ initiative on that street in the vicinity of Kinsmen Park.
“The artwork is worth it to increase safety,” said Martensville City Councillor Spencer Nikkel.