Traffic laws apply to motorcycles, right?
Why are laws not enforced?
Living in Fox Lake, it is quite apparent that the police in town, the county or the state feel it is necessary to enforce laws along Route 12, Grass Lake Road or State Park Road. This allows the motorcycle crowd to run full bore, enjoying the ability to speed (cars too) with no fear of being ticketed, and breaking windows in houses with their straight pipes blasting as they leave stoplights or a bar!
Having looked up state law, I find it interesting that there are two laws that no motorcycle has to obey, and the police, the judicial system, and even our legislative system does not seem to be interested in enforcing these two laws on motorcycles!
Could it be that Harley Davidson and other bike manufacturers are contributing too much money to them during elections?
State law (625 ILCS 5/12-210) clearly states that all motor vehicles will dim their lights within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle or when approaching another vehicle from behind. No motorcycle ever dims all or any of their lights in any such situation! Why? And why are the local, county and/or state police not pulling them over and ticketing them?
State law (625 ILCS 5/12-602) also clearly states that "every motor vehicle driven or operated upon the highways of this state shall at all times be equipped with an adequate muffler system."
What motorcycle, especially Harleys, have mufflers, and why are the police not ticketing them for this breaking of the law?
I hope that if someone ever gets pulled over in a car for no muffler or not dimming their lights and are ticketed, they start a class action lawsuit against that police department and the state for being discriminated against!
I also hope that others who feel as I do about these lawbreakers, will call their state officials, as I am going to do, and tell them we want pressure put on the police and villages, and cities to start enforcing the laws!
Kenneth Hellstern
Fox Lake