A pack of upwards of 100 teens bicycled down the auxiliary lane and shoulder of the eastbound 120 Bypass — including some doing wheelies — on Saturday between Union Road and Main Street.
It was just a part of dozens upon dozens of traffic infractions caused by teen bicyclists that day including drivers reporting teens doing wheelies across all four lanes of heavily traveled Yosemite Avenue.

Manteca Police Chief Stephen Schluer said city is working to amend the municipal code — perhaps as soon as Feb. 3 – to give the department the authority to start impounding bicycles for illegal riding.

It also will make it a misdemeanor for anyone to take part in an organized or spontaneous “street takeover” using a bicycle.

Councilwoman Regina Lackey, who witnessed bicyclists doing wheelies across Yosemite Avenue, favors giving police the authority through the municipal code to aggressively enforce vehicle code violations by bicyclists.

That will require the impounding of bicycles for up to 30 days, charging associated fees, and possibly issue a citation or even an arrest where applicable.

It is similar to ordinances instituted in Ceres and Modesto.

Schluer said police were made aware of an organized bicycling event planned to travel through the city.

However, the actual turnout significantly exceeded what organizers anticipated.

A large number of teen bicyclists from outside the Manteca area traveled to participate in the “ride out.”

As the event unfolded, Schluer said it became clear the size and behavior of the group created serious safety concerns for motorists, pedestrians, as well as the bicyclists.

The police were not informed prior that the bicyclists intended to ride on the freeway.

It is illegal to ride a bicycle even on the shoulder of a freeway in California except in extremely rare exceptions where there are no nearby parallel roads for miles in remote areas such as in remote mountain areas and portions of the south state desert region.

Caltrans indicates there are only 1,000 miles of freeway in the state where bicycles are allowed on the shoulders with signs posted clearly stating when they just exit.

 Manteca several years ago adopted an ordinance regarding bicyclists swerving in traffic.

There are already legal and financial consequences for bicyclists — and by extension their parents of the riders are under 18.

In an injury accident, bicyclists can be held accountable.

“We don’t determine fault, we determine cause,” Schluer said of police reports issued in injury accidents.

That information is also shared with the city’s engineering division.

In the hypothetical case of a bicyclist doing a wheelie that is struck — or strikes a vehicle — police weigh if the behavior of an individual set the stage and whether any mitigating factors such as the other party speeding contributed.

Over the years, police have issued citations to those bicyclists under 18 involved in car collisions.

One such example was at Northgate and Main where a young bicyclist was injured riding off the sidewalk at the intersection and being struck by a car making a righthand turn.

The parent angrily protested the citation claiming their child had the right of way on a green light.

But state law is clear you can’t ride a bicycle on a sidewalk. The reason is not just for the safety of pedestrians but also to not make movements at intersections overly dicey given it would require motorists to also look for approaching bicyclists on sidewalks moving significantly faster than pedestrians.

Schluer emphasized the California vehicle Code, for the most part, requires bicyclists to follow the same traffic laws as motorists.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com