[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee (now Mayor and Council)
of the Township of North Brunswick 9-15-1969. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
The intent of this chapter is to encourage the safe and proper operation
of bicycles on the streets of the Township of North Brunswick, particularly
by children, by furthering the programs established by the township police,
schools and civic groups to train children in the safe operation of bicycles,
and by providing a means of identifying the owners and operators of bicycles
who violate the standards set forth in this chapter governing the operation
of bicycles.
For the purposes of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined
as follows:
A two-wheeled, chain-driven vehicle propelled entirely by means of
the physical efforts of the person riding it.
A.
Registration required. No person shall operate a bicycle
upon any street or other public highway within the Township of North Brunswick
unless it has been registered and a registration tag is attached to such bicycle
as hereinafter provided. No person, firm or corporation shall rent or hire
out for use a bicycle unless it has been registered and a registration tag
is attached to such bicycle as hereinafter provided.
C.
Inspection of bicycle. Before a registration is issued,
the bicycle for which it is intended shall be inspected by a member of the
Police Department or other person or persons designated by the Chief of Police
or Police Commissioner, at such place as shall be designated thereby. No registration
shall be issued for a bicycle which has any mechanical defect which would
render the bicycle unsafe to operate. A bicycle shall be conclusively presumed
unsafe to operate if not maintained and equipped in accordance with the provisions
of N.J.S.A. 39:4-10 et seq.
D.
Registration card. Upon passing inspection hereunder,
each bicycle shall be registered and assigned a registration number, which
shall be entered on a registration card issued to and signed by the owner
of the bicycle and the person inspecting the bicycle. The registration card
shall also contain the name and address of the owner of the bicycle for which
it is issued and an identification of the bicycle by make, model, color and
serial number, if any.
E.
Registration tag. Each bicycle registered hereunder shall
be issued a registration tag containing the registration number of the bicycle
for which it is issued.
F.
Display of registration tag. The registration tag shall be securely fastened to the frame of the bicycle for which it is issued, in such a manner that it is readily visible. The willful or malicious removal, destruction, mutilation or alteration of such tag once attached, except by proper authority or for purpose of surrendering same as provided in § 128-4C of this chapter, shall be a violation of this chapter.
G.
Term of registration; annual inspection. The registration card and tag issued hereunder shall be valid for so long as the registered bicycle remains in the ownership of the owner initially registering the bicycle; except, however, that each bicycle registered hereunder shall be inspected annually within 10 days of the anniversary date of registration hereunder. Application for said annual inspection shall be made to the North Brunswick Township Police Department, and such inspections shall be conducted in the same manner as provided in Subsection C of this section. No fee shall be charged for the issuance of a registration card or tag nor for any inspection required hereunder.
H.
Transferability. No registration card or tag shall be
transferred from one person to another or from one bicycle to another unless
reissued by the Police Department.
A.
Report required. Any person transferring ownership of
a new or used bicycle to another within the Township of North Brunswick, whether
by sale, gift or otherwise, shall report that fact to the Police Department
within five business days after the actual transfer.
B.
Information. The report of transfer shall be made upon
forms furnished by the township and shall contain the following information:
(1)
The name and address of the person transferring ownership
of the bicycle.
(2)
The name, address and age of the person to whom ownership
of the bicycle was transferred.
(3)
A description of the bicycle, including its make, model,
color and serial number, if any.
(4)
If the bicycle was previously registered, its registration
number.
C.
Surrender of registration. When ownership of any bicycle
which has previously been registered is transferred to another person, the
person transferring ownership shall remove the registration tag from the bicycle
and shall return it and the registration card to the Police Department within
five business days of the actual transfer.
All persons operating bicycles on the streets or other public highways
in the Township of North Brunswick shall conform to all applicable laws of
the State of New Jersey and ordinances of the Township of North Brunswick.
A.
Inspection of bicycles. Any police officer may inspect
any bicycle at any time if he has reason to believe that it has not been validly
registered, does not have its registration tag properly attached or has a
mechanical defect which renders that bicycle unsafe to operate.
B.
Impounding of unsafe bicycles. If a police officer determines
that a bicycle is so defective or unsafe as to constitute a danger to the
safety of the person operating it or to others, he may impound the bicycle
immediately. A bicycle that has been impounded shall not be released until
the registered owner has given satisfactory proof that the defects that led
to the impounding will be corrected prior to the bicycle's again being
operated in the township.
C.
Violation in general. Any person, firm or corporation
shall be guilty of a violation of this chapter who:
In addition to any other penalty which may be imposed by law for a violation
of this chapter, the Police Commissioner, upon receiving information that
any person under the age of 16 has been accused of violating any provision
of this chapter, shall require that person to appear before him or his appointed
representative for a hearing. The accused person shall be notified of the
time and place of the hearing, of the time and place of the alleged offense
and of the general nature of the acts constituting the alleged offense. Notice
shall be served on the accused person not less than five days before the date
of the hearing and shall be in writing, but no special form shall be required.
At the hearing, the accused shall enjoy the same rights as a person charged
before the Judge with a violation of the laws of the State of New Jersey.
If the Police Commissioner or his appointed representative is satisfied by
clear and convincing evidence that the accused is guilty as charged, he may
prohibit the accused from operating a bicycle for whatever period that he,
in his discretion, deems just; such period, however, shall not exceed three
months, except where the offender has been found guilty of a flagrant or repeated
violation of this chapter, in which case he may be permanently prohibited
from operating a bicycle within the Township of North Brunswick.
