Iqaluit RCMP take to ATVs with focus on safety

While many Iqaluit residents head onto the land with ATVs during the summer, Police officers are doing the same.

Members of the public might see officers patrolling Iqaluit and Apex on the detachment’s pair of Polaris Sportsman 570 ATVs.

They’re getting on their quads as part of a community outreach project that aims to increase visibility — particularly in places harder to access in traditional police vehicles, like the beachfront, the old airport, Sylvia Grinnell Park, the Road to Nowhere and the back parts of Apex.

Police updated the city about the initiative during council’s July 26 meeting. The focus is on crime prevention, safety and building relationships with community members.

“The ATVs of today are not the ATVs of yesterday,” said RCMP spokesperson Sgt. George Henrie Thursday in a phone interview. “Now they’ve gotten much bigger and a lot faster, carry a lot more power — there’s definitely a risk of losing control.”

Modern ATVs have the capacity to reach speeds of up to 140 kilometres per hour, he said.

He emphasizes the danger and risk that comes with driving while impaired or speeding.

“All ATVs on the road are supposed to be registered and insured,” he said. “And everyone on an ATV should be wearing a helmet.”

He reminds drivers to ride to the capacity the ATV is designed for, citing recent incidents where people have fallen off overloaded ATVs and injured themselves.

The plan is to continue the patrols in Iqaluit for the rest of summer and possibly switch to snowmobiles once winter sets in.

While it is still early, RCMP members have observed an increase in positive interactions with the public, enhanced visibility, and additional opportunities to engage residents and address issues proactively, Henrie said.