Sent the following to the Illinois DMV
- Thread starter Warner
- Start date
Warner
Member
I follow the bicycle rules of the road and ride on the shoulder whenever possible (which is MOST of my trip to and from work). I have lights on the bike, wear safety gear (helmet and gloves), and don't seem to attract ANY attention from the police. I've been cruising at 30+ mph down the shoulder of one of the busiest roads in Illinois and have had cops drive RIGHT past me. They don't seem to care...and why SHOULD they? I'm not bothering anyone and I'm obeying all of the traffic laws. Just a guy trying to get to work and save gas.
Warner
PS - I'm quite SURE that it doesn't hurt that my engine is essentially hidden from view and my engine is very quiet....Mitsubishi 43TLE with a second muffler. The road noise from car tires is louder than my engine.
Warner
PS - I'm quite SURE that it doesn't hurt that my engine is essentially hidden from view and my engine is very quiet....Mitsubishi 43TLE with a second muffler. The road noise from car tires is louder than my engine.
sparky
Active Member
It does seem that most cops kinda block bicyclists out of the mind quite a bit, regardless of their speed. I see sooo many coppers here staring at their mounted laptop screen instead of looking at the road. Lucky for me, so long as they don't run me over.
Warner... we should try to see if we can get them to write a legal definition into the vehicle code for Motor-Assisted Bicycles, to distinguish them from mopeds. I've had luck when contacting my state rep (D'Amico) about other issues... They write back and if they get enough contacts about it they actually either say "yeah, I'll work on it" or "no thanks"
Mountainman
Active Member
should -- carry that letter
sure should -- carry that letter with you as you
ride that thing -- below 20 mph
sure should -- carry that letter with you as you
ride that thing -- below 20 mph
Warner
Member
Since the law essentially prohibits them (by the letter of the law, not by what someone told you on the phone at the DMV), it boils down to whatever the cop wants to do. If he or she feels like hassling you, you will lose. I would venture to guess that most cops A) Don't know the law, and/or B) Don't feel like messing with someone on a bicycle, UNLESS they are doing something blatantly stupid like weaving in and out of traffic or disobeying traffic laws. If you ride in Illinois, you can know for certain that there are no laws in place to PROTECT you from being ticketed. There ARE laws that, if examined very closely and interpreted verbatim, would work against you definitively; but none that you could point to that would exonerate you.
WArner
WArner
bluegoatwoods
Well-Known Member
Yes, Warner. I think that last statement you made sums it up pretty well; there are laws that MIGHT work against us and there are none that will work for us.
The only thing left us is to be on good terms with the police.
The good news is that that's not really hard.
Here's where I'll stick my foot in my mouth: How about a law requiring operators to be, say, 35 yrs old?
(I'm not really serious
But everyone please, please act the part of "goodwill ambassadors" for motor assisted bicyles.
The only thing left us is to be on good terms with the police.
The good news is that that's not really hard.
Here's where I'll stick my foot in my mouth: How about a law requiring operators to be, say, 35 yrs old?
(I'm not really serious
But everyone please, please act the part of "goodwill ambassadors" for motor assisted bicyles.
sparky
Active Member
OORRR.... we could go one step further and come up with all the states that haven't defined motorized bicycles, and then send each of their legislators a letter showing how awesome MBs are for everyone... and there only needs to be an age (16) and speed limit (25 MPH??).
If anybody has some time to spare... finding the threads where we tried to accomplish this task and adding to them would definitely be helpful to many on this site and would-be MBers as well.
bluegoatwoods
Well-Known Member
You're right, Sparky. We ought to work on ways to cement our legal status on the roads. The reason that I'm a bit reluctant to petition our legislators for legal status is the fear that it might backfire on us.
The automobile is still king of the road. Motorcycles are pretty much welcome because they are able to keep up with traffic. Bicycles are barely tolerated. It seems that no legislators or regulators have been willing to stoop so low (yet) as to ban them.
But practically all other low power, low speed motorized vehicles are outlawed the moment they show up. The exceptions are few and far between. If we encourage official consideration of motor assisted bicycles, then we run the risk of being dumped into the outlaw category.
I'm not certain that this is inevitable. In fact, my own estimate is that the chances are roughly 50-50.
But it's a threat that we shouldn't ignore.
It's true that Arizona, for instance, has recognized these as legitimate, road worhty vehicles. but other places might put them in the same category as go-karts, for instance. And if they do, it'll be hard to regain the lost ground.
The automobile is still king of the road. Motorcycles are pretty much welcome because they are able to keep up with traffic. Bicycles are barely tolerated. It seems that no legislators or regulators have been willing to stoop so low (yet) as to ban them.
But practically all other low power, low speed motorized vehicles are outlawed the moment they show up. The exceptions are few and far between. If we encourage official consideration of motor assisted bicycles, then we run the risk of being dumped into the outlaw category.
I'm not certain that this is inevitable. In fact, my own estimate is that the chances are roughly 50-50.
But it's a threat that we shouldn't ignore.
It's true that Arizona, for instance, has recognized these as legitimate, road worhty vehicles. but other places might put them in the same category as go-karts, for instance. And if they do, it'll be hard to regain the lost ground.
Warner
Member
I agree with Bluegoat......my fear is that they WILL specifically define MAB's, and BAN them outright. This "grey area" actually provides me some mediocre level of comfort.
Warner
Warner
Similar threads
