Provo and Brigham Young University police will more strictly enforce bicycle traffic laws to encourage safety and reduce the number of accidents.
"Our goal is to encourage people to ride their bicycles instead of using their vehicles, but we want bicyclists to ride safely and to obey the laws that apply to them," said BYU Police Lt. Steve Baker.There were 148 automobile-bicycle accidents in Provo during 1989 and 1990, one of which killed a cyclist. In 119 of the accidents, riders suffered injuries ranging from scrapes and bruises to broken bones and head injuries.
A study of those accidents by Provo Police Lt. Greg DuVal indicated that the failure of bicycle riders to obey traffic ordinances contributed to a number of the collisions. Even so, drivers were at fault in most of the accidents.
Accidents primarily occurred in an area between University Parkway and 600 South, and between 900 East and 500 West. The majority took place between noon and 6 p.m.Police will be writing more citations against those caught breaking traffic rules, something officers have not concerned themselves with in the past. Officers will also cite bicyclists who are found to be at fault in an accident.
"The officers feel that these types of tickets are demeaning to their image, petty in nature or that the courts may not uphold them," wrote DuVal in his study.
DuVal said running stop signs and traffic lights, riding on the left side of the road and riding without lights at night are among the most frequent violations by cyclists.
During a 30-minute period one day in June, police observed that 17 of 23 cyclists committed a traffic violation at the intersection of 800 North and 200 East, the report said.
Provo Police Capt. George Pierpont said bicyclists are required to follow the sames rules of the road as motorists, with some minor exceptions.
Pierpont described the violation problem as moderate and said enforcement will be in select areas near the BYU campus and at key intersections.
Police want to step up enforcement - but not to the point where people begin to say, "Don't police have a better way to spend their time?" Pierpont said.
The goal is to educate the public on bicycle safety, he said.