City Council President Tracye Whitfield presents amendments to the city’s ordinance regulating dirt bikes.
Photo credit: Focus Springfield
SPRINGFIELD — Whether it is complaints about the noise, reckless nature of the drivers or groups of them clogging roads, city officials and residents have increasingly said dirt bikes have become a nuisance on Springfield streets. Maura Healey recently approved a request by Mayor Domenic Sarno to allow Massachusetts State Police to join the Springfield Police Department in crackdowns on such vehicles. Ward 6 City Councilor Victor Davila described dirt bikes as a “public menace,” and said he encountered a group of about 50 blocking a public street corner at 10 p.m. one night.
At the Oct. 19 City Council meeting, Council President Tracye Whitfield presented amendments to the ordinance regulating off-road vehicles, including dirt bikes.
The new language uses the state’s definition of an off-road recreational vehicle as “any dirt bike, all-terrain vehicle, off-highway motorcycle, or similar motorized vehicle designed primarily for off-road use and not registered for lawful operation on public highways.”
The amendment states that people are prohibited from operating off-road recreational vehicles on city-owned or controlled property, including public ways, sidewalks, parks, playgrounds, recreation areas or public-school property unless authorized by law. It also defines reckless and negligent operation and prohibits bikes from violating the city’s noise ordinance. The ordinance already spelled out requirements for operators to stop for law enforcement or if in an accident.
Rather than a blanket $300 fine, as the ordinance currently imposes, the amendment would institute a fine schedule of $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense within one year and $300 for a third offense within two years of the first. Additionally, the operator or their guardian if under age 18, would be liable for damage to city property. If the operator is under age 18, they may be required to complete a diversion program, such as a safety course or community service, in lieu of a fine.
If the vehicle were to be impounded, the owner has the right to request a hearing. The amendment states the vehicle cannot be sold or destroyed unless the city receives a court order or “express statutory authority.”
When discussing whether the bikes could be destroyed after impoundment, Ward 4 City Councilor Malo Brown said he would prefer the city to sell the vehicles because destroying them was “a waste.” Davila commented, “If I had my way, I would just take a hammer to it, a sledgehammer, and break it.” Whitfield said the vehicles must be auctioned.
Ward 8 City Councilor Zaida Govan said the police struggle to enforce the ordinance because the bikes are hard to catch. Ward 5 City Councilor Lavar Click-Bruce agreed. He noted that gas stations are only supposed to sell gas if the dirt bike is transported on a trailer. He asked if there were penalties for gas stations that violate that rule. Whitfield said she would consider adding penalties for the stations.
Ward 2 City Councilor Michael Fenton said that, despite pushback against automatic license plate reader cameras in the city, cameras in the right-of-way are one tool that can help law enforcement catch dirt bike operators. While Whitfield expressed a general dislike of such cameras, she agreed that they would be helpful in these situations.
The council approved the amendment’s first reading, and it was sent to the Public Health and Safety Subcommittee for further review.
