Northeast - Not so sunny in philly

http://www.kyw1060.com/pages/5703470.php?

This isn't going to earn Philly any Bike Friendly City points.

If Philadelphia requires all bikes to be registered then what happens with visitors/tourists who ride their own bikes? Or is the Philadelphia City Council not expecting anyone to visit Philly? I've thought about taking my bike on the train from New York City for Bike Philly but I certainly don't want to get some kind of ticket for riding an unregistered bike!

Like I needed another reason not to go there?

The registration thing is never going to happen. Politicians are just throwing it around because two bikers somehow killed two people (two separate incidents within like a week of each other) and they're trying to cash in on whatever popular backlash against bikers there may be

Along with this of course are lots of things about fines for biking like a dickhead, which I'm all for. Barely a day goes by when I don't encounter some jackass speeding down the sidewalk, or barging out into intersections when they don't have the right of way, or riding the wrong way down the bike lane.

I hope that stuff happens but the registration thing is stupid, completely impractical and impossible to enforce. It's just politicians trying to score points

The registration thing is never going to happen. Politicians are just throwing it around because two bikers somehow killed two people (two separate incidents within like a week of each other) and they're trying to cash in on whatever popular backlash against bikers there may be

Along with this of course are lots of things about fines for biking like a dickhead, which I'm all for. Barely a day goes by when I don't encounter some jackass speeding down the sidewalk, or barging out into intersections when they don't have the right of way, or riding the wrong way down the bike lane.

I hope that stuff happens but the registration thing is stupid, completely impractical and impossible to enforce. It's just politicians trying to score points

And in the meantime ignoring what could REALLY help here- like enforcing the laws that actually exist. The ones that apply to both cyclists and motorists.

Hmm, government yet again intruding into everyday life. What a surprise.

Hmm, government yet again intruding into everyday life. What a surprise.

Actually, I'd argue that what's gotten us to this point in Philly is exactly the opposite- police turning a blind eye to blatant traffic violations by motorists and cyclists alike. And if the police aren't"the government"- who is?

Actually, I'd argue that what's gotten us to this point in Philly is exactly the opposite- police turning a blind eye to blatant traffic violations by motorists and cyclists alike. And if the police aren't"the government"- who is?

The police are not "the government," nor do they seem to be behind this bill. As usual with bike registration ideas, it's designed to increase revenue and to a lesser extent expand the role of government in private life. The timing with the two deaths is a mere smokescreen.

I'm in favor of the police enforcing traffic laws. I wonder what is causing them to ignore lawbreakers? Anyway, creating another unenforcable law hardly seems the answer.

The police are not "the government," nor do they seem to be behind this bill. As usual with bike registration ideas, it's designed to increase revenue and to a lesser extent expand the role of government in private life. The timing with the two deaths is a mere smokescreen.

I'm in favor of the police enforcing traffic laws. I wonder what is causing them to ignore lawbreakers? Anyway, creating another unenforcable law hardly seems the answer.

Agreed! I was speaking tongue-in-cheek re: cops being the government, but they certainly are agents of same. Anyway, my sense is that they don't care too much about sidewalk cyclists and people who blow through (I'm nominating that for phrase of the year...) red lights because of too many other, more important things to do. It's all about priorities.

There's the argument about priorities, and "why go after xxx when you should be chasing murderers," but then there's the "broken glass" policing approach which worked so well in New York. That basically says that if you ignore the little transgressions, it creates a culture of blight.

On the other hand, the other day as I was riding home, a cop was parked in the bike lane, while he worked the traffic light. So it's not like they give a darn one way or the other.

There's the argument about priorities, and "why go after xxx when you should be chasing murderers," but then there's the "broken glass" policing approach which worked so well in New York. That basically says that if you ignore the little transgressions, it creates a culture of blight.

On the other hand, the other day as I was riding home, a cop was parked in the bike lane, while he worked the traffic light. So it's not like they give a darn one way or the other.

actually there's no proof that Giuliani's Quality of Life Policing actually did all that much to drive down crime but it did do threee things
1 - It gave a lot of young men criminal records
2 - it clogged up the court system
3 - It provided the city with an abundant supply of men to perform free labor under the guise of community service.

The whole theory that addressing quality of life issues reduces crime ignores the fact that the previous mayor, Dinkins, had hired 5,000 more cops and initiated "community policing", the economic climate dramatically improved, and many of the young men rounded up during this time simply grew older and were less likely to engage in 'mischievous' behavior. In fact, crime had gone down nationwide including cities where police didn't focus on quality of life issues.

Passing laws requiring cyclists to register their bikes might help reduce that "air of illegality" as they used to call it back in the 90s but Philly has to be ready to enforce those laws and handle the added load on their court system. Even then, the benefits may be negligible or it could impact in areas city officials haven't even begun to consider.

I hope that stuff happens but the registration thing is stupid, completely impractical and impossible to enforce. It's just politicians trying to score points

I don't think it's that stupid. With registration comes a way to uniquely identify a bike. It is therefore possible to track stolen bikes, and possibly insure them. Perhaps this could be a way to curb theft and hostility towards bikers in the city.

I do think, however, that it is completely impractical and impossible to enforce, especially considering the state of affairs with the Philadelphia Police Department these days...