Originally Posted by
daven1986
Sure they can't fence off the whole course, but they could at least tell the spectators what is acceptable and then remove those who don't abide by the rules.
They (the police and officials) do tell the spectators not to impede the riders and by and large they (the spectators) don't. The police are the only ones legally entitled to remove anyone.
Some of the TV spectators as evidenced here come from a different cultural environment than the spectators on the road.