N.J. lawmaker proposes mandatory license plates for bicycles

[davidinalameda]

If an Essex County lawmaker has her way, every single bicycle in the state of New Jersey will soon have to have a license plate.

The $3,000 mountain bike, the little girl’s bicycle with pom pom streamers and training wheels, the boardwalk cruiser with the cute pink basket — all of them would have to bear the plate, marked "BICYCLE" in clear lettering.

Riders or their parents would plunk down up to $10 a year to register them with the Division of Motor Vehicles. And anyone caught riding an unregistered bicycle on public property could face a fine of up to $100 for each offense.

That, anyway, is the basic outline of a bill (A3657) introduced by Assemblywoman Cleopatra Tucker (D-Essex) who said she proposed it after several senior citizens in Belleville and Bloomfield called her to complain about kids on bikes.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/01/nj_assemblywoman_proposes_mand.html

[villager]

1. Whatever you do -- *don't tax the rich!* Take it out of everyone else's hide!

n/t

[Arctic Dave]

2. Will they need a bicycle license too?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

3. hey you kids...

get off my street!

[beyurslf]

4. Why would they need a plate that just says "Bicycle"?

Have some people not known what they were when encountering them? A tag that has an identifying number so the owner could be located--I suppose one could make an argument why this might be helpful. But, just calling it "bicycle" just seems stupid.

[hayu_lol]

9. Back in the 40s/50s in Los Angeles County...

you weren't required to have a license on bikes...but you could go to the sheriff's office/Police Dept. and buy one with a number. The plate number was then stamped into the bike frame for ID purposes. It was a one-time deal. Most of us rode our bikes to school in those days.

[beyurslf]

11. That makes sense.

You could ID it then if it was stolen. But "bike" isn't going to help much. :)

[Davis_X_Machina]

5. I pulled a moving violation on a bike...

...left hand turn without signalling, in Chapel Hill years ago, and got a ticket. Turned up three years later when I applied for auto insurance, too.

Such things have been around for a while:

[DJ13]

6. Next up, mandatory bicycle seat belts

[csziggy]

7. Why not put individual numbers on the plate while they are at it?

Seriously, I would love to be able to give a distinct license number to the police to complain about the few bicyclists who refuse to follow the laws. Those guys piss off motorized vehicle drivers and promote anger at all bicyclists.

I've called the police about cyclists who ride in large groups and totally block the highways, cyclists who pass on the right, cyclists who ignore traffic signs and signals, and cyclists who swerve all over the roads without signaling. But the police have no way to identify and locate those law breakers. If they had tags with individual numbers, at least the police could track down the worst offenders.

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

8. RIiiightttt.... Where are they gonna get the "start-up" money for this?

Won't it just be cheaper and quicker to JUST UNDO BUSH'S TAX CUTS?.. <<<< well we can't really call them Bush's :eyes:

[gratuitous]

10. I'd be in favor of it

I ride about 5,000 miles a year commuting, and that wouldn't bother me at all. There are a LOT of bicycle thefts in Portland, and a central registry would help get at least a few of them back to their owners. It might also cause a few of the Junior Lance Armstrongs in town to be a little more circumspect about at least appearing to follow the law. When someone can spot your license plate and report you for blowing through red lights and stop signs, that might be a deterrent. It would also shut up some motorists about cyclists using their precious streets and not paying their way (as if auto licensing, registration and gas taxes cover the cost of laying and maintaining roads, which they don't).