Bicycle Austin forum

MichaelBluejay

Webmaster

From: Austin, TX

Registered: 2008-05-26

Posts: 1,455

Website

Police give cyclists 47 traffic tickets on UT's "Bike to UT" day

Full story:  http://kxan.com/2014/05/01/47-tickets-h … to-ut-day/

More interesting (and disappointing) to me is the vitriol against cyclists displayed in the Comments section (especially the perennial "cyclists should obey the law too", as though drivers don't routinely break the law and actually kill people when they do so).

badgnome

Member

Registered: 2012-01-26

Posts: 50

Re: Police give cyclists 47 traffic tickets on UT's "Bike to UT" day

This is a good event to refer to when people tell you that cyclists are never ticketed. If motorists feel that there is an equal application of the law they have less ways to rationalize cyclists not being on the road system.

bizikletari

Member

Registered: 2009-03-18

Posts: 223

Re: Police give cyclists 47 traffic tickets on UT's "Bike to UT" day

If motorists feel that there is an equal application of the law they have less ways to rationalize cyclists not being on the road system.

Ha! Since everyday is drive to UT day, equality would require 47 tickets a day for motorists around UT. Reasons abound, I work there, I see them.

MichaelBluejay

Webmaster

From: Austin, TX

Registered: 2008-05-26

Posts: 1,455

Website

Re: Police give cyclists 47 traffic tickets on UT's "Bike to UT" day

This is a good event to refer to when people tell you that cyclists are never ticketed. If motorists feel that there is an equal application of the law they have less ways to rationalize cyclists not being on the road system.

I guess I'm a pessimist then, because I don't think they really care about facts, or logic.  It's the same reason why motorists go on tirades about cyclists "not following the law like drivers do", ignoring the massive carnage caused daily by law-breaking drivers while cyclists rarely hurt anyone and even more rarely actually kill anyone.

dougmc

Administrator

Registered: 2008-06-01

Posts: 623

Re: Police give cyclists 47 traffic tickets on UT's "Bike to UT" day

This is a good event to refer to when people tell you that cyclists are never ticketed. If motorists feel that there is an equal application of the law they have less ways to rationalize cyclists not being on the road system.

Doesn't work.

If they believe that cyclists are never ticketed, they'll just think that this sort of thing is needed to play catch up, and since this isn't done every day ... they'll never catch up.  Also, the fact that there was a crackdown confirms their belief that a crackdown was required -- "see?  even the police agree!"

The latest statistics are that 2% of trips are made by bicycle in this city, but I seem to recall that around 1% of the traffic tickets that APD gives out go to cyclists.  If my memory is correct, then cyclists would be ticketed a little less than drivers -- though of course that probably makes some sense as 1) cyclists don't get tickets for driving with expired tags or inspection, no insurance, etc, 2) on average, cyclist trips are shorter than motorist trips, 3) cyclists rarely exceed the posted speed limit, unlike motorists, and 4) both groups roll through stop signs and go through red lights.

(Of course, I'm glossing over a whole bunch in that comparison, but if I had the statistics in front of me, that ought to be a lot more convincing that cyclists do get ticketed than pointing to a crackdown.)