A group of throttle-happy bikers have had their crotch rockets impounded after being caught treating the Upper Levels Highway like a drag strip.
Around noon on Sunday, a concerned driver called North Vancouver RCMP to report that more than half a dozen men on sports bikes were riding dangerously, weaving through traffic at high speeds and riding on the shoulders. Other witnesses reported seeing the same group making their way east from as far away as Squamish.
Officers set up a road block on the Cut, slowing weekend traffic to a more familiar weekday-like lurch.
“We were able to get six of them,” said Cpl. Richard De Jong, North Vancouver RCMP spokesman. “All of them were ticketed for driving without due care and attention.”
Those tickets come with a $368 fine and six driver penalty points.
Under the Motor Vehicle Act, that also constitutes street racing, which allows police to seize the vehicles and keep them impounded for a week, De Jong added.
One of the accused had already lost his licence related to a previous incident on the roads and will have to appear in court for driving while prohibited, according to police.
The bikers are all from Vancouver or Richmond.
Dangerous riding seems to be a popular activity these days, according to the RCMP.
“There have been several similar reports in the last few weeks in the same area,” De Jong said, although he could not say if police believe it’s the same group of men.
While the fines and impounds may have let the air out the bikers’ tires, things could have wound up much worse for them, De Jong said.
“It’s a very dangerous way to drive your bike, with the density of the traffic, with the high speeds, sudden swerving of vehicles – it can lead to both serious injuries and or death,” he said.
