At a meeting last week between the BTA, the Portland Police Traffic Division and citizen bike advocates, Commander Bill Sinnott told us about a cool new program they’ve started.
In recent weeks they have carried out undercover “bike missions” that put officers on bikes in order to observe and ticket motorists that violate laws and make unsafe maneuvers.
This is far beyond PR lip service, and shows they care enough about bike safety to actually put themselves out there and see what it’s like from our perspective. Despite what your feelings are about how the police treat cyclists, you have to appreciate this program.
Commander Sinnott has shown interest in possibly having me join him on one of these missions (I still need to confirm this with him). If I do go, I’ll snap photos, take notes and report back…stay tuned!
If you want to comment on this program, call (503) 823-2103 and press “6” to leave a message.