One Reddit user has sparked discussion online after sharing photos of a police officer stationed beside a biking path, issuing hefty fines to cyclists for speeding. The post, titled "Police officer in SUV giving $400 fines to people on bikes," has ignited frustration on Reddit.
In the post, which links to another post in the r/Calgary subreddit, the resident explains that officers have begun targeting one of the few bike paths available, writing: "Police in my extremely car dependent/oriented city sit next to the already limited number of bike paths giving people fines. In most cases the fines are more expensive than a car driver would receive. This is theft and oppression of bike riders [at its] finest."
The frustration is understandable. Many people choose to bike for health, financial, and environmental reasons. Biking is a great way to stay fit while getting you from A to B without producing tailpipe pollution. It's also more affordable than owning a car, and in some cases, it's the only transportation a person has aside from public transit.
With police penalizing cyclists with excessive fines, people could be discouraged from cycling altogether. One commenter wrote on the linked post: "Bruh. I'm going back to my 4000lb vehicle."
Even though biking is one of the most eco-friendly modes of transportation available — cutting pollution, reducing traffic, and benefiting public health — many communities still funnel disproportionately high resources into car infrastructure (and, in this case, policing cyclists) while investing little in safe, continuous bike networks.
Fortunately, some cities are moving in the opposite direction. From expanding protected lanes to introducing e-bike incentives, they are adopting policies shown to lower pollution and make streets safer for everyone.
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For cyclists in the Reddit thread, the enforcement seems a bit much.
One commenter wrote: "1-9km/h over the speed limit $150 10+ means $400. Imagine if they ticketed drivers for doing 1-9 over the speed limit."
"For reference 10+ here … is about 18 mph or basically a normal cruising speed for a proficient cyclist on an empty path," another added.
A third Redditor said: "I don't think there's anything wrong with issuing speeding tickets to cyclists per se, but this is obviously an absurd dollar value, and absolutely not proportional to the potential for harm."
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