----Original Message----- From: Jason Sittko
You called 911 because of a rude person blocking the road??? Come on. Get out of your Minnesota shell, open your car at say "Hey buddy, how about moving your car so we can get through?" I'm guessing you were thinking there COULD have been an emergency and your 911 call would preempt some road blockage for a real emergency but let's save the 911 use for the real emergency. [TB] My understanding has always been that the Mpls Police Dept. encourages people to use the 911 number even for calls that do not constitute an emergency. The reason being that 911 goes to the dispatch center which is able to prioritize calls. Presumably the 911 dispatcher will assign a lower priority to blocking a lane of traffic (unless, perhaps, its in the middle of 35W) or an unlicensed bicycle than an assault or robbery. I suspect that if an emergency vehicle came along with lights and siren anyone using a traffic lane for conversation would move out of the way. -----Original Message----- From: Dave Polaschek As to the MPD, there are some officers who don't know the laws that pertain to bicycles. I've taken to carrying a copy of MN 169.222 with me when I ride after hearing of friends who have been stopped for "taking a lane" when doing so is the only possible (let alone safe) choice, or been told to "get on the sidewalk where you belong" by members of the MPD. It's not every officer who is ignorant, but there are enough that it's a worry. [TB] Has this happened often? In at least Uptown there is City signage advising bicyclists to stay OFF the sidewalks. Although the same rule should apply to the Loring Greenway (the walkway from Loring Park to Nicollet Mall) it for some reason has its own unique status and is not considered a sidewalk. There the signage asks bicyclists to ride with courtesy. A cyclist and a walker is not a real good mix as the walker is rarely paying that much attention to what is behind him/her. I would expect that a member of the police force would know that a bicycle has the right to use the roads and could certainly understand why anyone met with a request to "get on the sidewalk where you belong" might feel that they were being harassed. Terrell Brown Loring Park terrell at terrellbrown dot org _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
