Should they pay?

[tvc184]

what are they gonna have. cause i sure dont see inspections going away

There will still be required inspections but there will be no stickers. You will get a certificate and it will be recorded on your license plate information. If an officer stops you and runs your plate (or runs it as you drive down the road), it will show that the vehicle has not been inspected.

I think they were trying to respond to the continuing problem with inspection stickers being stolen from business and taken off of vehicles and ones being faked. It isn't hard to copy an inspection sticker on a computer.

[Puggy625]

I am for getting away with all registration fees and inspections however they will still need to same money to fund DPS, TPWD, etc.

Let's just increase all sales taxes so we can all share equally instead of just heaping the taxes on those that actually use the public right of ways and facilities. We still still need inspections and such but let's all share the burden.

Right?

I see lots of government money spent enforcing traffic laws, boating laws, hunting and fishing laws, etc. I don't see any money at all being spent enforcing bicycle laws. I have been in law enforcement for 30 years and have never seen a bicycle enforcement task force. Maybe it is time for one.

Great! I already pay for highway funds through my federal taxes. I'm already "taxed twice" (or multiple times if you count each vehicle I have registered to me).

[CaptainDave]

Sad story to hear for sure.

Actually, the way I see some of these weekend warrior groups ride all around the Houston area on a weekly basis, it's amazing more of them don't get seriously hurt or killed. Countless times I've seen these people ride down busy city streets (no shoulder) in packs of 20-50 deep taking up just about the entire side of the road impeding traffic. Not to mention the many times I've seen these groups blow through red lights if they don't see a car coming although they are supposed to follow the rules of the road.

I hate taxes as much as the next guy, but some of these groups down right impede traffic flow. For that alone, they should have to pay some type of registration fee.

Don't get me wrong. I try to be as courtious as possible when driving around bike riders provided I would never want to be the driver in the story the OP shared. But at the same time, I think it's funny how all of these cyclist say that other drivers should be more courtious to them and be willing to share the road as the road is theirs to use as much as anyone else. If a bicycle was your primary transportation and way to work, that's one thing, but if it's your weekend warrior hobby, then that's another.

[cosmiccowboy]

Bike girl gets to ride free.

[wilcohunter]

Don't think they should pay but do think they need to get the hell out of the way!! Sorry to hear about your father and glad he has been able to forgive himself and move on. My grandfather hit two cyclists about 5 years ago. He came around a corner pulling a loaded stock trailer and there they were in the middle of the lane. Now way he could stop...

[denimdeerslayer]

Yes they should pay and only be allowed on designated roads with a bike lane they pay for. They ride all over the road where I live and are a pain in the rear. I've almost hit them many times.

[tvc184]

Great! I already pay for highway funds through my federal taxes. I'm already "taxed twice" (or multiple times if you count each vehicle I have registered to me).

I am taxed way more than twice. The feds take their cut three times (income, social security and medicare taxes), the I own land in Texas so I have to pay for roads, law enforcement, etc., but then I have to pay for my trailer, my vehicle and sales taxes.

I still don't see where bicycles are an issue to be taxed on the roadway which seems to be out of spite. Some people just don't like bicycles on the road. Great but what will a fee do? In fact many people on here have bicycles or they have kids that do and they are claiming to want to pay more taxes and the extra taxes will not change bicycles on the roadways.

If a person is worried about too many bike riders in a city, would it make the person feel better if they were paying a $5-$10 road use fee?

[cj7zrcool]

.....I think they were trying to respond to the continuing problem with inspection stickers being stolen from business and taken off of vehicles and ones being faked. It isn't hard to copy an inspection sticker on a computer.

When I was in my 20's I had an old '76 C10 Chevy truck that wouldn't pass state inspection. I drew, cut, and colored a very good likeness of one and used it for several months. Later that year I sold the truck to a buddy that wanted to part it out.

[CaptainDave]

[QUOTE=tvc184;8057666]I am for getting away with all registration fees and inspections however they will still need to same money to fund DPS, TPWD, etc.

Let's just increase all sales taxes so we can all share equally instead of just heaping the taxes on those that actually use the public right of ways and facilities. We still still need inspections and such but let's all share the burden.

Right?

I see lots of government money spent enforcing traffic laws, boating laws, hunting and fishing laws, etc. I don't see any money at all being spent enforcing bicycle laws. I have been in law enforcement for 30 years and have never seen a bicycle enforcement task force. Maybe it is time for one.[/QUOTE]

Dumb question, but why can't the normal patrols enforcing traffic laws also enforce bicyle laws? If you are working an area and see a group of cyclist break a law, just pull them over and issue a citation. Couldn't this just be like speeding tickets or something. Obviously, you can't write a ticket for everyone that is speeding down a roadway, however, you can issue a citation here and there, which typically keeps the population somewhat in check. Same could be for bicyles. If word got out that a few citations have been issued to cyclist for breaking traffic laws, then perhaps more of them would be inclined to simply follow the laws.

[tvc184]

This thread and others like it remind me of a quote more than 160 years ago by a Frenchman when talking about Americans.

“Americans are so enamored of equality, they would rather be equal in slavery than unequal in freedom.”
Alexis de Tocqueville

By God, if I gotta pay, he has to pay!!

Let's drag us all down so we can be equal at the lowest common denominator.

And by the way, I don't own a bicycle and no one in my immediate family does either. It just seems silly to tax someone else because I have to pay for a car license.

[kyle1974]

should pedestrians pay? what about runners? what about soccer mom's pushing strollers with occupancy ratings of 2 or more children?

I'm *real* sure the anti cyclist posse on TBH would end the complaining even if bikes started paying a registration fee...

[tvc184]

When I was in my 20's I had an old '76 C10 Chevy truck that wouldn't pass state inspection. I drew, cut, and colored a very good likeness of one and used it for several months. Later that year I sold the truck to a buddy that wanted to part it out.

[cosmiccowboy]

I don't mind driving behind some of the bikers...

[tvc184]

I don't mind driving behind some of the bikers...

Terrible.

That should be a camo shirt.

[Shallowater]

I think her other vehicle is a white jeep.