Fort Wayne,IN

Police to crack down on mo-peds
Safety concerns produce plan to tow unlicensed, uninsured scooters

The two teenagers on the mo-ped with the taillight out at 2:35 a.m. July 12 made a 180-degree turn so close to Fort Wayne Police Officer Pete Mooney that he nearly struck them with his cruiser.

Mooney, who had responded to a non-life-threatening crash involving a mo-ped a couple of hours earlier, warned the riders about the light and made them walk the vehicle home. Officers like Mooney have traditionally given mo-ped and scooter riders the benefit of the doubt, but as motorized bicycles proliferate the streets because of high gas prices, so have accidents involving them, and police are planning a crackdown.

“We want the people who are currently in violation to get those vehicles registered, get those things taken care of before we start enforcement,” Police Chief Rusty York said Wednesday. “We’re seeing more and more of them out there, more and more accidents, more and more serious accidents.”

On June 3, a mo-ped rider was killed, and on Aug. 27 Christopher Kirtman suffered serious head and back injuries after being struck by a hit-and-run driver. Amanda K. Tyler, also known as Amanda K. Hollingsworth, was charged Wednesday with failure to stop after an accident.

York and Deputy Police Chief Marty Bender said many parents who buy scooters for their children may not realize that any vehicle designed to go faster than 25 mph is considered a motorcycle and riders must have driver’s licenses and receive specialized training known as a motorcycle endorsement. Both mo-ped and scooter riders under 18 must wear a helmet and goggles or a face mask. Riders must be at least 15.

Police plan to give riders 30 days before they start towing unlicensed and uninsured mo-peds and scooters and citing riders. Bender said most dealerships inform customers that scooters need to insured and licensed, but many of the vehicles causing problems are being sold by unlicensed dealers.

Robert Itt, a House of Honda salesman, agrees, saying his dealership on North Wells Street is being undercut by backyard salesmen who don’t play by the rules or inform customers of the rules of the road.

“I’ve got to hold a business license out here, pay the tax money and they don’t have to,” Itt said. “(It’s) Joe down the block who’s buying 20 or 25 at a time, sells them outright, doesn’t collect tax, doesn’t tell the customers what they need to have or do, sends them on the road and on their happy way.”

Itt said sales of scooters are up about 20 percent from this time last year due to high gas prices and are no longer just being bought by teenagers and college students, but people of all ages. He accused Indiana State Police of harassing some of his customers, something State Police spokesman Sgt. Ron Galaviz denied, insisting his agency’s goal is voluntary compliance with state laws.

“We’re not out to try to dissuade anybody from selling, purchasing or operating these machines,” Galaviz said. “I know gas is almost $4 a gallon. I want to save money, too.”

Bender said the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in 2006 better clarified the definition of motorized bicycles, but police weren’t made aware of it until recently. Bender and York emphasized riders who refuse to comply will pay a high cost, but enforcement is designed to reduce the human cost. “Hopefully we’ll stop another fatality from happening,” Bender said.

Police to crack down on mo-peds | The News-Sentinel - Fort Wayne IN