Ventura Cali Crackin Down

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surfer mike said:
just gotta do all the things to keep legal.
the california motorcycle handbook says we can ride in the bike lane if necessary.
not many bike lanes around me anyway.
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ventura laws r different then the laws in the California motorcycle handbook..
we have to use a motorcycle helmet, register the bike and have a special license plate. The handbook say we can use a bicycle helmet and that we don't have to register our bike...

Y dose ventura have special laws? idk but it sucks
 
I know a traffic attorney. I have a copy of the laws and keep them in my backpack at all times. Unless the laws have recently changed here in California this information is not correct. I will follow up and have them research this for us.

Basically - we are allowed in any bike lane adjacent to a road and must wear a DOT helmet. We do not have to have a motorcycle license as we can't take the test on our motorized bikes. The laws are specifically written for motorized bicycles, pedal assisted, not exceeding 2HP and 30mph.

On a ride last week I passed two police, one was on a motorcycle with a radar gun in Santa Monica. I just blew past him and he looked right past me.

Always wear a helmet, and smile - it's the easiest way to avoid an issue.
 
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NYNEOMITE said:
I work in a law office and spoke to a traffic attorney. I have a copy of the laws and keep them in my backpack at all times. Unless the laws have recently changed here in California this information is not correct. I will follow up and have them research this for us.

Basically - we are allowed in any bike lane adjacent to a road and must wear a DOT helmet. We do not have to have a motorcycle license as we can't take the test on our motorized bikes. The laws are specifically written for motorized bicycles, pedal assisted, not exceeding 2HP and 30mph.

On a ride last week I passed two police, one was on a motorcycle with a radar gun in Santa Monica. I just blew past him and he looked right past me.

Always wear a helmet, and smile - it's the easiest way to avoid an issue.
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Ventura County Reporter - Officers upping enforcement on illegal gas-powered bicycles

The laws include:

1.Registering with the DMV and displaying a special license plate (Vehicle Codes 5030-5035)

2.Have a motorcycle license (VC 12804.9)

3.Have the proper lights mounted for driving at night, a mirror and a horn (VC 24015)

4.Must wear a motorcycle helmet VC 27803)

5. Riders can’t use bicycle lanes (VC 21207.5), due to the high rate of speed gas powered can go versus human powered.

so is it just ventura that got anal and added laws?
 
NYNEOMITE said:
I work in a law office and spoke to a traffic attorney. I have a copy of the laws and keep them in my backpack at all times. Unless the laws have recently changed here in California this information is not correct. I will follow up and have them research this for us.

Basically - we are allowed in any bike lane adjacent to a road and must wear a DOT helmet. We do not have to have a motorcycle license as we can't take the test on our motorized bikes. The laws are specifically written for motorized bicycles, pedal assisted, not exceeding 2HP and 30mph.

On a ride last week I passed two police, one was on a motorcycle with a radar gun in Santa Monica. I just blew past him and he looked right past me.

Always wear a helmet, and smile - it's the easiest way to avoid an issue.
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damn this sucks can you email me or post links to the laws so i can print it out?
 
This is what always gets me,
“The reason we were getting complaints … some motorized bikes go 30 miles an hour, and people were riding them like bicycles, flying through downtown in crowded areas,” he said.
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What about the people who fly through crowded downtown areas on BICYCLES, cutting off traffic and generally making asses of themselves because well they're on a bike and they feel they don't have to obey the traffic laws?

Funniest thing about this is this is from a state where it's legal to cut though traffic on a motorcycle.
 
how can a city inforce a vc that I don't have access to? I've heard" ignorance is no excuse from the law" Can anyone show me the vc on a website and not just a newspaper article ?
 
You guys in California have it made and you don't know it. No bike with gas power is legal here.
You can ride all year too. I would be delighted to pay a nominal fee to use a gas bike.
Mike
 
Don't complain too much. At least you have the option to ride legally there on roadways. There is nothing I can do here to make my ride legal even though I would like to. If you let that sink in for a second you are actually pretty fortunate. It's going to take me a year just to break in my engine making short covert runs once in a while. Really you guys are lucky.
 
Has anyone done this ? What is or where do I find the VIN on a frame that has been rusting in my back yard for10 years?and my eng. ser. # is the man. date, the make Grubee?this dopes'nt seem do able any comments from someone who has done it , please thanks Bob
 
Most bicycle serial numbers can be found on the bottom of the crank tube and if it's too rusty to read I wouldn't use that bike with a motor.
 
Use the serial # of the bike for the VIN# and if your motor does not have a serial # ? Make one up. Send the completed form and a check for $19.00 to the DMV in Sacramento and 3-6 weeks later you will get your plate and ownership/registration card. You want to be sure to mail it to Sacramento as it seems the the folks at the local DMV's don't have a clue about these rules and regs. At least they didn't here at the DMV in Costa Mesa when I tried to registar my first bike two years ago.

ocscully
 
What i did is just take the written test for the M2 endorsement at the DMV , its 28 bucks and just roll with the permit , its good for a year. it says plainly on my permit for "motorized bicycles"
forget the driving test just roll with the permit
 
i just mailed my registration form monday. for the vin i used the serial number of the bike, for the serial #, i used what was stamped on the grubee tag, which looks like the date, and for make, i wrote Colson, because my bike's made by Colson.

i'm also considering going completely legit. as it stands now, my bike's doing 45mph, and i ride it in the lanes with traffic more than i do in the bicycle lanes. it's safer that way, 'cause you're not gonna get clipped by right turn-ers, and you've got a lot more room to manuever if someone cuts over on you.

i'm hoping to rig up some cool lights and turn signals, so when my bike's completely legal, and i have the moped registration in hand, i'm going to demand that i be allowed to take the skills test on it, as it's the vehicle i will be riding.

dunno how that's gonna work, but with the popularity of these bikes increasing, along with the inevitable crackdown on them, i want to be ahead of the game, and beat thenm to the punch.

if my bike's legally registered as a motor vehicle, and not just a toy with a motor on it, if they do eventually ban them, i can fight back, using their laws against them.
 
I am often amazed about some of the misinformation posted here. The original article was mostly correct about the laws being enforced in Ventura. They also apply to all of California. Many people will disagree but they are wrong. I’m not talking about what you can get away with in certain jurisdictions. I’m talking about the actual laws. The article was wrong about the bikes lanes. I think they got them confused with bike paths which typically do not allow motorized bikes. It is my understanding that you are required to use the bike lanes adjacent to the roadway when you cannot keep up with the pace of traffic. Make your bike legal and get your M1 or M2. Then you can ride with impunity. We can do that in California. Many other places do not offer that luxury.

rockvoice said:
What i did is just take the written test for the M2 endorsement at the DMV , its 28 bucks and just roll with the permit , its good for a year. it says plainly on my permit for "motorized bicycles"
forget the driving test just roll with the permit
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I’m curious why you got the M2 permit endorsement instead of the M1 permit endorsement. Isn’t it the exact same written test? If you get the M1, you can ride any two wheeler, not just a moped.

Won’t you have to get your license in a year, or can you renew the permit every year? The permit does not allow night driving as far as I can remember.

Either way - good job getting the correct permits to be legal.
 
the M1 and M2 permits are one in the same . no difference same test, i just said m2 because thats what tell you need in the dmv and chp handbook.

and by the way i know and agree with every thing youve pointed out.
just because most of us have been getting away with it doesnt mean its legal
 
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