In attempt to set a yearlong precedent, police are putting extra effort into bicycle enforcement during the first weeks of the year, issuing tickets to bikers who break traffic laws.
Tough bicycling enforcement usually only lasts two weeks into the school year, but this year, cycling-law violators are still facing enforcement.
University of Wisconsin Police Department Assistant Chief Dale Burke said the frequency of police pulling over bikes is due to an increased focus on bicycle safety.
“We’ve been working with Madison Police, the sheriff’s office and Capitol police to promote bicycle safety,” Burke said. “It’s been an intensive effort. [Bike traffic violations] are a problem,” he said. He added that the concerns are due to the possibility of injuries or fatalities.”
UW sophomore Sonya Bute fell victim to these strict rules after failing to stop at a stop sign.
“I was on the corner of Langdon and Park,” Bute said, “and instead of completely stopping, I just slowed down and then kept on going.”
She was called over by two police officers standing next to their bikes on the corner.
Because she only had one class for the day, Bute was not carrying identification, an offense that could have resulted in a trip to the police station. After the officers warned Bute to come to a complete stop at each stop sign, they made her read a packet regarding bicycle safety on the roads.
“It was stupid,” Bute said after the incident. “You know how they have speed traps for cars? This was like a bike trap.”
Burke said when there are thousands of pedestrians and hundreds of bikes, mopeds and cars, it can pose a potentially dangerous situation.
Lieutenant Eric Holen of the UWPD said there have been 23 contacts between UWPD and bikers since Sept. 23. Ten were warnings, with a majority dealing with improper lighting. 13 citations were issued, mostly for failure to stop at a sign or traffic light, which results in a fine of $131.40.
“We try to do warnings first, then follow up with citations,” Burke said.
As Holen noted, bike traps or undercover cops to catch bikers are not a priority for UW Police.
“We’re not trying to keep [our practices] a secret,” he said. “You can just think of all the stop-sign-controlled intersections on campus.”
Holen recounted times when he sat in plain view in a marked squad car and bicyclists continued to blow stop signs.
“The culture is such that the perception for bikes to not follow some rules of the road dictates (that) it’s OK,” he said.
Even though the majority of citations issued deal with running stop signs, other common violations include not signaling turns, riding between lanes of traffic, or bikers riding two or three wide in a lane. Burke said all could lead to evasive and potentially dangerous actions by motorists or pedestrians.
