They were agreed to during discussion of budget revisions, but now it’s official. Fines are going up in the city of North Battleford.
A bylaw was passed Monday night at council to increase penalties under the Traffic Bylaw. The provisions include increasing penalties from $30 to $40 for exceeding the time limits in the two-hour parking areas and for parking on streets during restricted times or days.
Also going up are fines for parking or stopping in fire lanes, or in handicapped stalls without a permit. For those, fines are going up from $150 to $200.
City manager Jim Puffalt said there was no excuse for people to park in those areas, because those areas are well-signed.
“I know that some people will say it’s a tax grab,” said Puffalt, but he added that “you don’t have to break the law and you don’t pay.
He noted there were issues at the hospital with respect to people parking in fire lanes, so that was one area that was addressed.
Also added were new provisions to prohibit operators of vehicles from driving through large accumulations of water in a manner that would splash pedestrians, or create waves and endanger properties.
Puffalt noted the city of Yorkton has fines for those incidents as well. The fines for North Battleford are set at $200.
The traffic bylaw amendments were approved unanimously in three readings at council.
On another item related to the city budget revisions approved last month, council has approved the proposed increase of $10 for criminal records checks.
The increase will apply for every level of service requested, with the exception of those serving an organization as a volunteer. Those will not be increasing.
