Advocacy & Safety - Undercover Cops on Bikes?

Would something like this work for bicyclists? One could have undercover cops riding bikes in traffic and then reporting offending drivers to cops in cars or on motorcyles farther down the road.

http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=20102060315

I also use good judgments when crossing with and rarely without crosswalks. When I say "rarely," I meant that for some circumstances when I missed the bus due to bus driver not stopping for me, I had to get to class (Valencia Community College East) via sidewalk and there may not be any sidewalks that were taken over by the drainage system, so I had to yield to make sure the traffic is clear and quickly cross the street without a crosswalk.

But anyway, it'd be great to see undercover cops in Orlando and Miami, FL.

I'm sure the limitation here is cost. Maybe there's a way for the public (us) to collaborate with police?

I still remember one ride last summer. I was about 30 miles into a 35 mile ride and I saw someone toss a McDonald's bag out of their window. Without hesitation, I did a U-turn and hammered. The minivan pulled into a subdivision and I kept following. When the family pulled into their driveway and started unloading, I asked if they knew what they did in a demanding tone.
"Sorry officer." My mind was running with ideas of what to do. My end idea was to make the driver go back and pick the bag up off the middle of the street, along with some other trash I saw by the curb to make up for what he did. I don't know why in God's name he thought I was a police officer (maybe police are the only ones who care about litter anymore?), but it sure felt good.

Why not get a cheap cell phone and call in the licence plates of the offending drivers your self?
You might gain insight into where cyclists' rights lay on the cops priority list.

A cheap cell phone that costs 20 cents a minute? :)

Cell phones are useless for me due to hearing impairment. :(

that's a really good idea. A local woman was killed on a bike at the beach last year, and I wonder if it wasn't a situation like that where the road was nearly impassable for anyone that wasn't in a car. I think that there are more incidents where drivers can be cited regarding their driving around pedestrians. You can go to any downtown in the U.S. and watch drivers intimidate pedestrians into giving up their right of way. I don't think the same can be said around cyclists. It's common, but not an everyday occurrence.

Actually, now that I think about it, there is an intersection near me where this would nab a large number of motorists. There is a bike lane and it's impossible to cross the intersection safely. I've stopped trying, and ride on the main drag. The right turning motorists almost never stop, even when they have a red and are going to brake check an oncoming vehicle that has the right of way.

Can't hoit. I bet they can pay for it with the tickets they pass out. Sounds like there were about 5 officers involved, and if they passed out 45 $150 tickets, it should pay for them. There's going to be a point of diminishing return where people actually start obeying the law and the officers aren't drawing in enough ticket revenue to pay their wages, but that's what we're shooting for.

IMO, as long as the officers aren't needed for other life-critical duties, there's no downside here.

tThe right turning motorists almost never stop, even when they have a red and are going to brake check an oncoming vehicle that has the right of way.

Sounds like a great place to drive with a video camera and a big old land barge with steel and concrete reinforced sides. Take your right of way, submit video of incident to the cops as they supervise the other car being towed away and the guy heading off in the ambulance.

I'm sure the limitation here is cost. Maybe there's a way for the public (us) to collaborate with police?

....

Cost is one issue...and exactly how 'undercover' such operations are is another issue. In small to medium sized towns the people who need to know who the cops are---the criminals and their networks---are well informed as to police actions and thus a 'sting' is known well in advance.


roughstuff

Y'know, that's kinda funny; kids in the 'hood' that are out in their yards or the street ask me EVERY summer if I'm a cop.

I guess they just can't get past the idea that the only 'white boy' who'd ride an expensive bike through THEIR hood would be anyone other than a cop.

In this case, he's a bike mechanic who served his country, and still remembers how.....................

Sounds like a great place to drive with a video camera and a big old land barge with steel and concrete reinforced sides. Take your right of way, submit video of incident to the cops as they supervise the other car being towed away and the guy heading off in the ambulance.
you have an obligation to avoid a crash, so that's a problematic approach. During the incident that marked the last time I rode the bike path through there, it seemed like the right turning car and I were both going to end up splattered by the car with the right of way. I saw the oncoming car and figured there was no way that the guy making the right turn was going to go, but he thought differently. His passenger apparently said something -- she looked like she was bracing for impact. Just for completeness, I also had the right of way but that doesn't seem to count for much at this intersection. I figure the cops could clean up just ticketing people who make right turns on red without stopping. That would make me happy because I'm tired of having to be so vigilant when I'm in my car.

I'd just like to see a bike patrol that leaves downtown. The other 95% of the city called: We ride bikes too.

The greenbelt trails have no protection. I'm not sure the police would even know how to respond to a crime on one.

In the city of Portland (Maine), the police have a few officers who periodically patrol various areas on bicycles. Their favorite is one with numerous bars and restaurants that are open into the small hours of the morning. I notice them by the blinking blue lights mounted on the handlebars when they ride into or out of the area. However, they don't look like the cops beyond the badges and other accessories. They do a pretty good job of preventing people from driving drunk or calling in reinforcements to stop motorists or rowdiness at a particular place.


While effective, assigning undercover officers on bicycles requires organization, community support, money, equipment and a way of doing it right. It can't be done by people pretending or sounding as if they are officers of the law.