Missoula Police Cracking Down on Cyclists

By Kyle Lehman, 9-19-08

	Caption: Photo by Emily Haas

Missoula police are stepping up efforts to ticket lawbreaking cyclists in response to the surge of bicycles on the streets.

“With rising fuel costs and students back in town bike traffic has increased dramatically,” said Lieutenant Scott Brodie of the Missoula Police Department. “It can cause some problems.”

Brodie said that the increase in bike traffic has lead to more citizen complaints about cyclists failing to obey traffic laws and riding at night without lights. As a result, bicycle infractions have become a higher priority, with police officers detailed specifically to enforce bike laws and issue tickets to cyclists that break them.

Judging by police reports and court documents, these unruly riders aren’t especially hard to find. So far in September, police have issued twice the number of city ordinance bicycle citations as they did during the entire month of July. The police log for September 15th contains one flurry of ticket writing in which two officers issued five bicycle moving violations in 48 minutes.

Biking citations handed out in Missoula will likely end up in front of Judge Donald J. Louden of the city’s Municipal Court. According to Louden, a missing front light carries a maximum fine of $200 and a $16 filing fee. Despite the hefty maximum fine, as long as someone learns from their first infraction it is unlikely they will face such a steep penalty. 

“The first missing light violation I usually dismiss,” he said. “Just know that next time it will be a fine.”

The importance of rider safety and education is a primary focus of Missoula’s bicycle advocates. Alexandria Stokman of Missoula in Motion says that more people are examining their choice of transportation and choosing to ride bikes. Lots of folks are beginning to ride their bikes because it makes economic sense. Stokman has also seen an increase in what she calls “choice riders,” people who do not have to ride but choose to do so for environmental and health reasons. With new riders saddling up every week, Stokman says that bicycle education campaigns must adapt to reach a broader group of citizens than in previous years.

“The audience is more diverse...you can’t have the same message go to every person” she said.

Phil Smith of the Missoula Bicycle Pedestrian Program maintains that keeping riders safe is a matter of awareness. Last fall, this included a campaign called Lighten Up, which was designed to make sure riders had the appropriate lights and reflectors to be seen at night. Smith said that his office will likely pursue a similar effort this year.

“Normally in the fall we put together a program of education,” said Smith, adding that the program typically runs during the first or second week of October. “After that the police step up their enforcement.”

Stokman said that while it is vital to inform cyclists of their responsibilities, drivers must also be aware of riders on the street. As far as enforcement goes, Stokman thinks that awareness can reduce the number of incidents and improve relationships between drivers and riders. Regardless of whether or not one understands the law, Stokman said, knowing the rules of the road becomes one’s responsibility the moment they throw their leg over a bike.

“Education and warnings do go a long way towards convincing someone to change their behavior, although some people do need to get ticketed,” she said. “We’re concerned with keeping people safe, not keeping people ticket-free.”