Packs of teenagers speeding, weaving in and out of traffic, and popping wheelies on motorized scooters, undersized motorcycles and “pocket bikes” have caught the attention of Lynn city councilors who want to fine them up to $300 for scofflaw motoring.
It’s a rare motorist who hasn’t heard the telltale growl of a small engine and suddenly been surrounded by a pack of scooter riders flaunting traffic laws. Are these nine-horsepower tyrants a societal irritant on par with 1950s drag racers or, as Ward 2 Councilor Richard Starbard said Tuesday night during a council hearing, “terrors” who have driven residents out of neighborhoods?
We feel the answer lies somewhere in the middle.
Police Chief Christopher Reddy has mapped out a plan to crack down on the two-wheeled anarchists by endorsing fines of up to $300 for violating a six-page set of proposed enforcement rules scheduled for review by the council on May 10.
The chief has also suggested “the ability to seize and hold vehicles until these fines are paid will be a big help, too.”
Those proposals make sense but the police have more pressing priorities than chasing mini-motorcycle riders around the city. And the scooter gangs, by definition, appear to be difficult to catch.
Reddy said motorists risk inciting a “mob mentality” if they attempt to apprehend scooter riders and, frankly, the riders are undoubtedly all too eager to record a police pursuit and splash it across social media.
We think the key to curbing scooter scofflaws may be to take aim at the roving gang mentality that fuels their lawlessness. Doing so might involve peer pressure in some form, or it might be as simple as designating some open-space area — perhaps on the former General Electric gear plant site — where hills and trails can be carved out and the riders can gun their engines and pop wheelies to their heart’s content without aggravating motorists.
We hope commonsense and stepped-up enforcement solve a vexing problem before someone gets hurt or killed.
