During the month of October police responded to two separate collisions in the Almaguin Highlands area involving dirt bikes operated by youth.
Most recently on October 11, 2023, members of the Almaguin Highlands OPP, responded to a single motor vehicle collision involving a dirt bike on Whitney Road in the Township of Perry. The youth was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
As a result of the investigation the youth was charged under the Highway Traffic Act with:
- Drive motor vehicle – no plates
- Drive motor vehicle – no license
The OPP would like to remind riders to stay safe and be mindful of the laws in place.
Dirt Bikes:
- A two wheeled dirt bike is classified as an Off-Road Motorcycle (ORM) and these are NOT permitted on Schedule B highways – ie. City streets, Highway 108, Highway 17 – Anything that the municipality or Ministry Transportation Ontario (MTO) maintains.
- Dirt bikes are supposed to be walked to a trail head entry.
- They are to be green plated unless operation is on a closed racetrack or one’s own private property.
- Dirt bikes can be operated on trails and Schedule C highways – dirt roads in unorganized townships that are not under the jurisdiction of the MTO or a municipality.
- There are no lights (headlight, signal, brake light), tires are designed for dirt, insurance may not be required, and class M license not required. These are strictly for off road use only.
- Two-wheeled dirt bikes are still prohibited from Schedule A (multi-lane like 400 series) and Schedule B highways.