[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Jim Thorpe 5-23-1985 by Ord. No. 85-6. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A device having two tandem wheels with tires 12 inches or
more in diameter, supported by a frame and propelled by human power.
Includes all public highways, streets, lanes, alleys and
all public places within the Borough of Jim Thorpe.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person residing in the
Borough of Jim Thorpe to operate a bicycle on any street in the Borough
unless it has been properly registered and licensed, as hereinafter
provided.
B.
The Police Department of the Borough of Jim Thorpe
is hereby authorized and directed to issue upon written application,
bicycle registrations and license stickers, which shall be effective
during the period of ownership of the bicycle by the applicant. Said
registration and licensing, when issued, shall entitle the licensee
or permittee to operate the bicycle so registered upon all streets
in the Borough of Jim Thorpe. Said registration is free of charge.
C.
The Borough of Jim Thorpe, through its police department,
shall provide a license sticker and keep a registration card for each
bicycle registered; said registration and license sticker shall have
numbers stamped thereon in consecutive order beginning with number
one. License sticker shall be firmly attached on the bicycle and shall
be displayed at all times on the rear fender of the bicycle when the
bicycle is in use on said streets.
D.
The Police Department is hereby directed to keep records
of bicycle registrations and licenses and dates of issue thereof.
The Chief of Police or his duly authorized representative
shall inspect each bicycle offered for registration, and shall refuse
to license any bicycle found to be in unsafe condition mechanically
or lacking equipment as required by law.
A.
Bicycles shall be operated only upon the roadways
of the streets and as near to the right-hand side as safely possible.
Bicycles shall not be operated upon sidewalks in the Borough.
B.
The operator of a bicycle shall obey all official
traffic signals, signs and other control devices applicable to motor
vehicles, unless otherwise directed by a police officer.
C.
The operator of a bicycle emerging from a driveway
or building shall yield to the right-of-way to all pedestrians on
the sidewalk and all vehicles and pedestrians on the roadway.
D.
The operator of a bicycle shall not carry any other
person upon the handlebar, frame or any other part of the bicycle;
provided, however, that this provision shall not prohibit the proper
use of bicycles built to be operated by two or more persons.
E.
The operator of a bicycle shall not indulge in any
abnormal or trick-riding, and shall keep at least one hand on the
handlebar at all times when in use.
F.
No person shall operate a bicycle at greater speed
than is reasonable and prudent under the conditions then existing.
G.
No operator of any bicycle shall hitch onto vehicles
or cars while such bicycle is in operation.
H.
No operator of any bicycle shall violate any traffic
rules or ordinances of the Borough of Jim Thorpe, or of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, which are applicable to bicycles or to motor vehicles.
I.
Every person operating a bicycle upon any street in
the Borough of Jim Thorpe shall at all times operate the same with
due regard for the safety of other persons and vehicles, as well as
for his or her own safety.
J.
Any bicycle owned or operated by a nonresident of
the Borough of Jim Thorpe shall not be required to register and be
licensed under the provisions of this chapter, but shall be subject
to all other provisions hereof.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person, willfully or
maliciously to remove, destroy or alter the identification tag or
plate, frame number of the bicycle, license or the registration card
issued to the owner thereof.
B.
Any person who violates a provision of this chapter
shall, upon conviction, be subject to the appropriate penalties set
forth in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code (75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101
et seq.) for each provision so violated.[1]
C.
Any bicycles which shall be involved wrongfully in
the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter may be taken
and impounded by the Police Department and so held for a period not
exceeding 30 days, to be determined by the Chief of Police. A fee
of $25 shall be required to obtain any bicycle impounded by the police.
Any bicycle not picked up by the owner within 14 days of termination
of the period of impoundment, shall be forfeited by the owner and
may be disposed of by the police without any further responsibility
or liability to the owner.[2]
