Should Skateboarders be Cited for Speeding?

The Los Angeles City Council has voted unanimously to assign L.A.’s overstretched police force with one additional duty: Ticketing skateboarders who travel more than 25 miles per hour or fail to follow rules such as stopping at stop signs and yielding to traffic.

Wednesday’s 12-0 vote was inspired by an idea from the Council’s newest member, Joe Buscaino, who wants to end the practice of “bombing,” or skateboarding downhill at high speeds while sometimes weaving in and out of traffic, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The City Council asked City Attorney Carmen Trutanich to draft an ordinance to prohibit “unsafe” skateboarding and enforcing a 25 mph speed limit on the widely popular activity. If the vote becomes law, police officers will be required to confiscate skateboards to prevent juvenile offenders from concealing their citations from parents.

Click here to read the full Times report, which quoted the president of the Northwest San Pedro Neighborhood Council, Diana Nave, as saying skateboarders in her community have been "weaving in and out of traffic—or they have come out of nowhere because they're moving so rapidly."

We wonder what the makes of the proposal, given the dare-devilry displayed by young skateboarders along some of Eagle Rock’s streets, such as Yosemite Drive, and the fact that there are no uniform speed limits for bicyclists.

If the City Council’s vote becomes law, Senior Lead Officer Craig Orange will have one more responsibility to shoulder while patrolling Eagle Rock. And parents of offending skateboarders will have to set aside half a day