Road blocks down here are a necessity and a welcome site to anyone who is not drunk and has the proper paperwork as in Drivers license, Motorcycle endorsement, Insurance, Brake tag, License plate ,and Registration. Every other car stopped in some areas of town are missing something and most don't care until they are the one hit and told tuff $hit, the driver that hit you is illiterate and does not have insurance. Then again i have been waved through a few on my bike. You get some respect on a bike as long as it is not a crotch rocket.

 

Forget it, I'm not going there!

 

Roadblocks are basically unconstitutional and I, for one, don't need to be hassled because I had two or three beers after work and then rode home.
It's just more big government control and that's the last thing we need. There are plenty of cheaper and more effective ways of making sure everybody is legal and not drunk.

Don't forget to call your Rep!!

 

On the great river road between Alton and Grafton Il, the state police put up signs on the shoulder of the road that reads "Illinois State Police Motorcycle Safety Checkpoint" with an arrow pointing to a roadside parking area. Every bike must stop. No cars or trucks stop.

This is the result of loud pipes and wreckless driving in Grafton on what should be quiet Sunday afternoons. I have been through the checkpoint once. I had liscense, registration and proof of insurance in my hand. The trooper didn't even bother to look at the papers or check my bike. He assumed I was legal because I was cooperating.

An older gentleman on a trike wasn't so lucky. He was forced to stop in traffic on a busy four lane road because the bikes weren't able to get off the road fast enough to prevent a backup. He was rear ended by a car. Many tickets were written for legitimate reasons. I don't feel sorry for them, but we still shouldn't be singled out of traffic to be checked because we are on a bike.

This is discrimination. There is no other way to describe it when they pull bikes only over. It would be no different than if they had a "chevy" day or a "ford" day. It is bike day. It is very effective. Less than half the usual bike traffic goes through Grafton on check days.

I wrote both my senator and represenative about the issue. Only the rep wrote back, the senator hasn't bothered with a response. My rep patted me on the back, but didn't give his thoughts about if there was anything wrong with all bikers being stopped because of the few who have caused the problem.

Last year was the fourth year in a row that I have ridden that trail on a regular basis. The first three years it was real common to see the trouble makers pulled over and getting tickets, as they should be. Now they are after all of us.

Dennis

 

I agree that is the way it should be if the police had to follow the law or the constitution, but they don't have to and there isn't much we can do about it.


Dennis

 

That is one of the reasons I joined the AMA, they protect your rights as best they can.

 

Man this is pure BS - there is no reason to single out bikes anywhere in this union, I have never seen these MC only road blocks but it sure as hell reaks of unconstitutional profiling.

 

"lots of road blocks 'targeting' bikers, yes its discrimination but you will have to fight for your right's."

Even though I'm across the border, they try this crap occasionally. Targeting one group of vehicle is discrimination (ie; decible testing) if they do it for bikes they have to test cars too.

 

1. QUOTE Originally Posted by wbeem
Road blocks have to stop everyone, not just one segment of the driving population. QUOTE

How about weigh stations for trucks?

2. North Carolina, my state, is looking at a road use tax (to supplement the fuel tax revenues which had fallen off due to the higher fuel prices) according to how many miles you drive. Kinda makes you all warm and fuzzy on the inside doesn't it?

Keith

 

States have legislation in place to cover freight vehicles, and they have to stop all freight vehicles that meet the legislation. If they had to weigh all passenger/commuter vehicles, we'd be there, too.