California Highway Patrol helicopter used to track bicyclist running a red light

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It turned into something a little bit more severe. I guess he was more afraid of the arrest warrants if he had been stopped and cited. Or maybe they don't even ask to see his ID and give him a warning. But at the least, he probably wouldn't have attracted any attention if he had just waited for the light to turn green. I know that's tricky on a bike, but I learned a few techniques for exposing the bike to metal sensors.


 
There are 2 stop signs on the street coming into our neighbourhood. It's a common bike route as well. I have never seen a cyclist stop at either stop sign.

Lots of cars do rolling stops too but the cyclists go through without even slowing down.

I'd like to see some enforcement. Someone is going to get hurt and then there'll be a lot of finger pointing.
 
Some traffic lights are controlled by wire loops under the road that act like a giant metal detector. If there's no vehicle detected waiting on the side street the light may stay red for a long time. They don't always detect bicycles.

This is an older system. Newer installations almost universally use cameras instead.
 
If you are rolling through an intersection, the metal sensors are not going to react quick enough for you to keep rolling.
 
Some traffic lights are controlled by wire loops under the road that act like a giant metal detector. If there's no vehicle detected waiting on the side street the light may stay red for a long time. They don't always detect bicycles.

This is an older system. Newer installations almost universally use cameras instead.

It's easy to see if that's the case. I can see where they are.

Induction-loop-traffic-light-sensors-embedded-in-a-Pennsylvania-intersection-1024x651.jpg


There's this intersection where I live where the options are left, straight, 45 degree right turn, and 90 degree right turn. Those making a right usually go to the right half of the lane and there are sensors under there in addition to the ones on the left. It also has a bike symbol there as a sign that it's a designated bicycle route, but motor vehicles can be in the lane when it's about 100 feet from the intersection. And almost all intersections with lights around here have these. I haven't seen one that doesn't have one. I have seen some bike routes where there was even a button for bicyclists to press.

bike-signal-davis-ca-attr-dave-roth.jpg


The method of exposing the bicycle was to lean it diagonally to expose more metal close to the sensor. Not sure what would happen with a carbon fiber bike though, although the frame is really only a small amount of metal even though it has the largest area. Not sure if the other metal parts on a carbon fiber bike would be enough. There are other ways too. I've heard of round loops that sense a bicycle vertically, although that's something for anyone to avoid hitting. There are also some bicycle/motorcycle dedicated loop sensors that are far more sensitive than those used for cars. I've even heard of some devices that are designed to trigger the sensors.
 
Well glad to see they're keeping the community safe from the hardened criminals. 🙄
Yeah, they were clearly wasting their time with this guy.

"Montiel added that officers found methamphetamines and drug paraphernalia on the suspect, who also had an outstanding felony and misdemeanor warrants."

Traffic stops for relatively benign offences can generate leads relating to more serious crimes. As the spokesperson alluded to in the article, if the cyclist had stopped as directed, and the traffic offence was all that was going on, he may well have just been sent on his way with a warning.
 
The CHP air force does some good deeds, but an opportunity doesn't arise every day.
 
The CHP air force does some good deeds, but an opportunity doesn't arise every day.

They do a lot of things including emergency medical airlifts and various rescues. Whenever I hear about a helicopter rescue in Yosemite, it's either the local sheriff or CHP.
 
It turned into something a little bit more severe. I guess he was more afraid of the arrest warrants if he had been stopped and cited. Or maybe they don't even ask to see his ID and give him a warning. But at the least, he probably wouldn't have attracted any attention if he had just waited for the light to turn green. I know that's tricky on a bike, but I learned a few techniques for exposing the bike to metal sensors.



To ask a cyclist to obey the rules of the road is like asking a drug addict to refrain from its use, may have better luck with the latter!
 
While stopped at a light behind a motorcycle and they are the first vehicle on the loop, I have had them motion for me to move up closer to them to activate the loop.
 
They keep the roads clear by clearing away accidents. Write tickets. Not rocket science
 
To ask a cyclist to obey the rules of the road is like asking a drug addict to refrain from its use, may have better luck with the latter!

I've seen some things that just boggled my mind. I was driving once in a national park and I think the state might have had some sort of "stopping optional" law for bicycles as long as there was no other traffic, pedestrians, etc. There's talk about creating such a rule in California. However, at that point I stopped at a stop sign and proceeded to move forward when I got cut off from two idiots on bikes who went around my right and cut left in front of me, apparently with no concern over their own nor our safety. I passed them earlier but didn't think they'd be so stupid as to cut off a car turning right while they blew a stop sign and turned left in front of me.

I do remember going on a club ride once where the club President was there and leading the back. We arrived at a stop sign with a police cruiser parked right there watching everything. Our pack leader yelled out that he wanted every rider to put one foot down at the stop sign so as to not give the officer an excuse to hand out citations.
 
Maybe the bicyclist needed to run that red light for a Strava PR?

This goes back to the respect for bicyclist struggle. Bicyclists demand respect for using the road. But Bicyclist advocacy groups say in order to gain and maintain the respect, they need to follow all traffic laws. Some bicyclists never got that memo and think they are exempt from said traffic laws.

Here's an example:
 
They keep the roads clear by clearing away accidents. Write tickets. Not rocket science

The CHP actually has a fairly broad mission, and admittedly local traffic enforcement is low on their priority. They've been called in to do local traffic enforcement in cities where the police are stretched thin due to staffing shortages. They're supposedly fully certified state law enforcement and can conduct arrests for pretty much anything as long as it's urgent and/or with the permission of the local agency.

They do all sorts of things, although they're generally specialized divisions. They investigate statewide auto theft rings and provide local traffic enforcement in certain areas where there's no local police. The local traffic enforcement is usually in unincorporated areas where the sheriff provides general law enforcement, but the county contracts with the CHP for traffic.

They absorbed the California State Police over 20 years ago and have a responsibility for what they previously did, which includied "dignitary protection" as well as patrols of state properties, including general law enforcement around parts of the state capital.

 
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