Why is it important for everyone to know the rules of the road as it pertains to cyclists and motorists? What happens when police (of all people) do not know the rules of the road? What sort of community education could help everyone share the road?
Road Rules
- Thread starter LaikaComeHome
- Start date
The cops know very little about ANY of the rules or laws. Better communication won't do any good. The best you can hope for is that when one of them shoots a cyclist for following a rule they don't know anything about, they get suspended and hopefully discourage other officers from doing the same thing for a week or so.
It really depends on the jurisdiction. Some cities and towns actually educate their officers on how to deal with motorists and cyclists, but a lot of cops don't know a thing about the actual law, especially when it pertains to bikers. It's a shame, and more education would help, but that can't erase years of not knowing the right rules in a given jurisdiction.
In my neck of the woods rookies tend to pull you over for the hell of it. I was told that they have a quota to fill because they are new. I'm not surprised really. So if they do pull you over it's not because you are breaking the law, it's because to want to see if they can find anything on you to give you a ticket.
In the Philippines, the police officers don't enforce traffic laws. Here they have traffic enforcers. Weird how they would separate the two. But if a cop stops you and says that you broke the law, then ask for a ticket. Most of the time they can't give you any and way hoping that you just pay them off.
I have, shall we say, a less than positive opinion of the police here in the States. I'm not surprised if they don't know the rules of the road. It's not like the ones here actually follow them. A couple days after getting my bike, I actually had a cop pull up beside me and yell at me to get on the sidewalk which was full of pedestrians at the time.
It's best just to minimize your negative interactions with them. Let them think they're right so you don't get into more trouble. A bad cop can completely ruin your day. If they give you a ticket that you know is BS, just challenge it. There's a good chance the DA in your jurisdiction will drop it and a judge isn't going to automatically slap you with a fine just because a cop says something. I've had completely bunk traffic tickets dropped by the DA before I could even show up to the court house to challenge it.
It's best just to minimize your negative interactions with them. Let them think they're right so you don't get into more trouble. A bad cop can completely ruin your day. If they give you a ticket that you know is BS, just challenge it. There's a good chance the DA in your jurisdiction will drop it and a judge isn't going to automatically slap you with a fine just because a cop says something. I've had completely bunk traffic tickets dropped by the DA before I could even show up to the court house to challenge it.
