BETHLEHEM, Pa. — People cruising city streets on all-terrain vehicles and dirt bikes not registered or outfitted for road use soon could face fines of up to hundreds of dollars and forfeiture of their machines.
Bethlehem City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously for a new All-Terrain Vehicles and Dirt Bikes ordinance, adding snowmobiles into the mix of prohibited vehicles.
The ordinance will be up for another reading before a final vote determines if it goes on the books.
Riding such vehicles on public roads is illegal at the state level, generally, except for when on certain trails and state park roads. A 2022 amendment to the law stated dirt bikes should be kept off of public highways, sidewalks and bike lanes in Pennsylvania's cities.
'The menace'
City Police Chief Michelle Kott said keeping “the menace” of the illegal vehicles off roads presents a challenge but isn’t impossible.
Her department has responded to seven major crashes since 2022, she said.
“These vehicles are often driven without proper training, protective gear or adherence to traffic laws,” Kott said. “This reckless behavior endangers not only the riders themselves, but also pedestrians, cyclists and other motorists who share the road.”
The ordinance "still gives officers the discretionary ability to just cite or to possibly give a warning. But for individuals that are engaging in that reckless behavior and are repeat offenders, it gives us the capability to seize that vehicle that is being illegally operated.”
“[The ordinance] still gives officers the discretionary ability to just cite or to possibly give a warning. But for individuals that are engaging in that reckless behavior and are repeat offenders, it gives us the capability to seize that vehicle that is being illegally operated.”Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott
New in town and aren’t familiar with the local rules regarding these bikes? Kott said officers use “a great deal of compassion and discretion” to educate first-time offenders rather than just cite right off the bat.
“Obviously that changes when someone’s driving down the street doing a wheelie or burnout or crossing the double-yellow to pass vehicles,” Kott said.
“So before you even get to that forfeiture hearing, the officers have discretion in the matter.”
Kott also got an in-person nod of approval from Northampton County District Attorney Stephen Baratta.
Baratta said the vehicles weren’t manufactured for use on pavement, have softer suspensions than road bikes, have differing wheel and tire compositions compared with street-legal counterparts and ultimately just make a lot of noise.
The community may help
Further cooperation and communication from the community would be appreciated, Kott said, if the ordinance goes through.
She said cameras around the city and in squad cars can help, but residents are welcome to share their personal security footage with authorities.
Under the ordinance as it’s currently written, gas station owners who witness individuals or groups of the non-street-legal vehicles trying to fuel up at their businesses also could face fines if instances aren't reported to authorities.
“I just don’t want to put a business owner in the crosshairs between a cop and a dirt bike interaction."Bethlehem City Councilwoman and Public Safety Committee chairperson Rachel Leon
“I just don’t want to put a business owner in the crosshairs between a cop and a dirt bike interaction,” said Councilwoman Rachel Leon, chairwoman of the board's Public Safety Committee.
Kott said, “We’re not trying to put people on the spot.”
What's this about snowmobiles?
Councilwoman Hillary Kwiatek said she's seen snowmobiles riding on her street before, though in rare cases.
Considering Commonwealth Vehicle Code, snowmobile operators would still be fined under the draft city ordinance but would not have the potential for impoundment like those with dirt bikes.
“I think the downtown business owners and residents and people that visit Main Street, Broad Street and Third and Fourth Street on the South Side — our central business districts — are going to appreciate this.”Bethlehem City Councilman Bryan Callahan
Leon said, “I would hate to see someone lose something that they’ve invested in if they just didn’t know that it was OK here.”
Councilman Bryan Callahan said he wanted "to thank everybody that worked on this.
"I think the downtown business owners and residents and people that visit Main Street, Broad Street and Third and Fourth Street on the South Side — our central business districts — are going to appreciate this.”
