BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Riding a gas-powered bike on city trails? It could cost you.
- Bethlehem police are addressing the use of illegal gas-powered vehicles on city trails and walkways
- Although only one case this year has led to vehicles being seized, one official said residents have been calling with complaints
- Police remind that for legal e-bikes or pedal-powered ones, the same rules of the road apply as for cars
The Bethlehem Police Department is stepping up enforcement of the illegal use of gas-powered vehicles on city trails and walkways.
Police Capt. Nicholas Lechman said with more people out in the parks, on the trails and walking the South Bethlehem Greenway this summer, police are beefing up patrols in those areas.
In a May Facebook post, the police department displayed a miniature motorcycle and motorized scooter seized from illegal trail riders.
Lechman said although police seldom seize vehicles, they can pose a threat to people using the walkways and citizens occasionally call with complaints.
“City ordinance prohibits the use of a motorized vehicle, really in any city park, but as well as along the towpath or any walking paths in city parks,” he said.
Any vehicle using electric power — say a bicycle or scooter — is OK for use on trails and walkways, Lechman added.
The D&L Trail has a posted speed limit of 20 mph, and its website lists a slower recommended speed of 15 mph. And state vehicle code surrounding street-legal electric bikes on the road requires that the machines go no faster than 20 mph using motor power.
Scott Slingerland, executive director of the Coalition for Appropriate Transportation, said that e-bikers must be aware of their speed as others are using the trails around them.
"I am glad for trail speed recommendations to be the same as PA vehicle code for streets for consistency sake — and above all else, that riders slow down and communicate when passing pedestrians," Slingerland said.
The cost involved
The city ordinance says violations are similar to traffic tickets, but with a heftier price. The first violation would cost $200, the second $500 and the third and any subsequent violations would cost $1,000 each.
The ordinance also allows the potential for imprisonment should the rider be a repeat offender past the third and fourth times being caught.
“I think it would be unlikely that somebody could be sentenced to incarceration,” Lechman said. “But obviously, if it would become a habitual problem, certainly the judge would have discretion to impose that kind of penalty.”
Lechman said it can be difficult to prove ownership of the seized vehicles in some cases. But if the riders can prove ownership, they get their rides back.
“City ordinance prohibits the use of a motorized vehicle, really in any city park, but as well as along the towpath or any walking paths in city parks."Capt. Nicholas Lechman, Bethlehem Police Department
“So if they don’t have any type of ownership documentation, we will tow it and impound it until they can produce some type of proof of ownership,” he explained. “Which, obviously if they do, it’ll be returned to them.
“If they are unable to establish ownership, we would typically either auction it off or send it to a vehicle salvor.”
Lechman wanted to remind those who use electric bicycles for their daily commutes that even though there are no specific registration requirements for the machine, all the same rules of the road apply as they do for four-wheeled transportation. The same goes for traditional pedal-powered bikes, too.
Sharing the road
John Ronca, owner of Cutters Bike Shop in South Bethlehem, said he’s heard of people riding gas-powered dirt bikes on the D&L Trail as a means of getting from town to town.
State lawmakers approved Senate Bill 1183 last year, cracking down on the use of illegal dirt bikes, ATVs and other vehicles on city streets.
Trail riders also need to stay on the lookout for electric dirt bikes as they’re using the D&L Trail and other local routes, as those machines may be upon you before you even realize what happened, Ronca added.
“So I know people have been getting on the trail with those; we’ve encountered a few of those,” he said. “They’re scary because they’re quiet and you don’t hear them, whereas the motorcycles you’ll hear the engine.”
“That’s the scary part for a lot of the riders, you know. You’ve got kids that may be on the trails, new riders that are on the trails — and it can get scary or dangerous.”John Ronca, owner of Cutters Bike Shop
Near Bethlehem is Walking Purchase Park, a legal mountain bike trail system in Salisbury Township that offers opportunities for singletrack riders to break loose on their pedaling excursions.
“Over 5,000 hours of volunteer labor have gone into making this trail system a success, transforming Walking Purchase Park into a destination for hikers, trail runners and cyclists,” says the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources website.
The park is St. Luke’s University Health Network's campus in Fountain Hill.
Ronca said he’s witnessed incidents involving motorized vehicles there that could’ve led to somebody getting hurt, including one where his daughter was almost hit by a four-wheeler.
“That’s the scary part for a lot of the riders, you know,” Ronca said. “You’ve got kids that may be on the trails, new riders that are on the trails — and it can get scary or dangerous.”
