Sigh
I was at the post office today when a bicycle cop rode up onto the sidewalk and parked his bike.
Then I watched as he came out and rode off down the sidewalk toward the park, where he met up with his partner.
I don’t support an all-out prohibition on sidewalk riding. I think that at the very least, bicyclists should be able to ride from the bike-rack to the street. But the reality is that the law says all riding on the sidewalk is illegal unless posted otherwise (as in the Stone Avenue Underpass) and the bike cops are not afraid to ticket people for even the most minor of sidewalk-riding infractions. I have a client who was ticketed for riding from the bike rack in front of Bruegger’s Bagels to the street, for instance — about 15 feet.
If the bike cops are going to ticket people for riding on the sidewalk, then I think they should quit setting a bad example and riding on sidewalks themselves. This guy was obviously not chasing down a criminal or responding to a call. He was just avoiding riding in the street because it was easier.
I’d get a ticket for that.
–Erik Ryberg
April 18th, 2009 at 8:31 am
I love this! Great pictures. When I get my eventual inevitable ticket for riding on the sidewalk, can we use these photos in court?
April 18th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Nope. It turns out that the bike cops’ violation of the law is not relevant to whether you yourself violated the law, which is the question that will be before the judge. Isn’t that handy?
–EBR
April 18th, 2009 at 2:24 pm
Two questions:
1) Will you be formally reporting what you observed to TPD Office of Professional Standards (IAD)?
2) TPD police cars have numbers posted on them, as well as license plates. Assuming TPD knows which vehicles are assigned to which officers it should be easy for them to figure out which officer was misbehaving in a car. But there is no identifying number on the TPD bike patrol officer’s shirt to, well, identify him. Why is this?
April 18th, 2009 at 10:19 pm
That is a nasty law for gold standards eh?
April 20th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Maybe the best thing is to print it out, laminate it and keep in my panniers, and flash it to the cops if they try to ticket me for sidewalk riding. It’s easier to talk a cop out of a ticket than a judge.
April 20th, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Better to break the law (or an ordinance) than risk your life. Don’t know about Tucson, but that’s my guideline in Phoenix.
April 21st, 2009 at 2:02 pm
The week that I got a ticket for not coming to a complete stop, I heard several stories from friends about obnoxious bike cops. One person got hit and knocked to the ground by an officer while standing on the sidewalk. One person got hit by a bike cop who was riding on the sidewalk in front of Epic cafe.
Annoying.
April 21st, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Have to mention that his bike is also blocking the exit way of the post office (fire code) and poses a real hazard in the event of an emergency evacuation. Especially to persons who might need the hand rail.
May 19th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
I work downtown in the Superior Court building. I observe these whackos every spring. Their blatant disregard for the very laws they enforce is stunning. I once saw a bike patrol officer ride in and out of the lobby of the main library here, just riding in circles through the automatic front doors like it was a game. If I even rode up to the library’s bike racks, I would’ve received a ticket before I could even dismount.
May 19th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
BTW, I like how’s he’s riding on the sidewalk AGAINST traffic. *rolls eyes*