Towing of motorcycles by police or council

[Undinist]

I know of a bike that was towed by City of London police for parking on a yellow line with the number plate removed. Does this happen anywhere else? Do any councils and police forces have much in the way of suitable tow trucks? The only ones I'm aware of are the MPS Isuzus which have a spectacle lift. I've seen one of those carrying a bike sideways with one wheel in each section of the lift. But I suspect it was an accident recovery. AFAIK you can't carry a bike that way without damaging it. You need to buy a special motorcycle adapter which attaches to the lift.

An MPS Isuzu with spec lift: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenjonbro/6341107413...
A spec lift: http://www.trukuk.com/images/D%20L%20Davies%20Cant...
Spec lift with motorcycle adapter: http://www.trukuk.com/images/Yeates%20Garage%20Spe...

[Undinist]

Thanks. What happens in your area if a biker removes his tax disc and mounts his number plate on velcro so he can remove it when parked and evade parking restrictions?

I've been getting away with this in London for many years. I used to park on yellow lines a lot in the days of police traffic wardens, but I took care not to inconvenience or obstruct anyone or take up more road space than necessary. The wardens always exercised their discretion and never ticketed me. When I was a courier I probably got away with parking illegally at least half a dozen times a day. Then the council parking wardens took over, no discretion shown, so I tried the velcro trick. This has never attracted the attention of a police officer, even a traffic officer. Even when I've been pulled over for a roadside chat no officer has ever objected to me keeping my tax disc in my wallet. I've been expecting more and more bikers to start doing this, and for councils to respond by investing in towing gear for bikes. But so far, so good.

[Undinist]

Yawn. Doesn't the discretion shown to me by police traffic wardens prove that it is feasible to park a motorbike on a yellow line without inconveniencing anyone? You do realise that bikes are smaller than cars?

[Undinist]

That might apply if I park lengthways in the middle of a space which is only big enough for one vehicle. But I don't. I aim to keep out of everyone's way and attract as little attention as possible. An average sized motorbike can be squeezed into a tiny space next to a bollard/skip/scaffolding etc. It can be parked perpendicular to the kerb. It doesn't need three feet of empty space at each end, like a car. Half an inch is plenty. It takes up no more room than a bicycle.

[Undinist]

I once explained the above points about couriers being unable to function to a stereotypical West African parking warden in the City. He was amazed to hear that courier firms do not pay parking fines on behalf of the riders. (The earnings are so poor these days that even if you don't get fined it is not possible to earn the legal minimum wage, let alone a living wage.) He was a decent bloke and let me park for the half hour I needed. You often need twenty minutes or more because you get buggered about so much by post rooms and receptionists and security. Some buildings even take your photo and check your ID so they can issue a temporary pass.

[Undinist]

aw51 121565 said:

You're comparing two very different agendae (police vs. local authority).

Precisely! The council parking warden's purpose is to raise money. The police traffic warden's purpose is to help traffic flow and keep crossing places clear for pedestrians. I do everything I can to support the latter objectives - despite being a serial flouter of parking restrictions I am very community-minded. In London we all have to do our bit to balance the needs of drivers, bikers, cyclists, elderly pedestrians, the disabled, children, mums with buggies, cats etc.

aw51 121565 said:

And I'm sure the police would be potentially very interested if they stopped your vehicle and found the registration plate was only temporarily mounted with velcro (ie why is this the case?? what else have you been doing without a number plate attached?? etc) .

Which is why I glue bolt heads to the plate. It also helps that I don't come across as a wker/tea leaf, don't have a criminal record or points on my licence.

[Undinist]

calibrax said:

I recall seeing an episode of Police Interceptors (or a similar show) where a biker had a flip-up plate fitted to his bike, presumably to avoid getting caught on speed cameras. He was prosecuted for perverting the course of justice, a very serious offence compared to most driving convictions. I would be concerned that the velcro plate mountings could lead to the same applying here.

I'm sure it's possible if the police give a monkeys. But they don't. They took blue badge fraud very seriously (eventually), but perhaps that was because of pressure from disabled groups/MPs/etc. I'm sure that if it became common practice for bikes to be parked without tax discs and numberplates, Something Would Have To Be Done. But it seems it's very rare. I've asked about it on a couple of bikers' forums and not found anyone else aware of it. I've been doing it for I don't know how long...15 yrs plus? I should probably just keep my head down and shut up about it.