businestoday.com
Wednesday, November 12, 1997
By Tim Cornell and Tony Munroe
Sparked by a tragic accident involving a prominent Boston educator andbanker, some local business leaders are calling for new curbs on bike messengers and are launching a boycott in the meantime.
``A lot of people are upset, and rightfully so,'' said Fleet Bank of Massachusetts President John Hammill. ``Clearly a lot of incidents have happened.''
Until tighter rules are in place, one of Boston's most influential publicists George K. Regan Jr. says businesses should hit bicycle couriers where it hurts most.
``Until sanity prevails and measures are put into place to avoid another such accident as befell Bill Spring, we are no longer going to accept packages delivered by bicycle couriers,'' said Regan, president of Regan Communications. He has asked other businesses to do the same.
A run-in with a bike messenger that left William Spring, 62, an admired member of the Boston School Committee and a vice-president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, in a coma led to the latest round of outrage at two-wheeled outlaws.
Spring was struck by an unlicensed bike courier while crossing Clarendon Street at Commonwealth Avenue on Nov. 4. Spring, under care at Beth Israel Hospital, is not expected to recover, officials said. Alarmed, a number of businesses are calling for a crackdown on bicycle outlaws.
Hammill has called for the executive board of the Boston Area Chamber of Commerce to discuss the issue tomorrow. In the past week, he has met with Police Commissioner Paul Evans and a number of business leaders.
``We're working to determine if we can make changes in the way the regulations apply,'' Hammill said. ``If we cannot we need to find a different way to deliver our packages in the city.''
But even before Spring's accident, a task force has been busily crafting new regulations aimed at cracking down on bicycle outlaws.
``They engage in their own form of bicycle road rage,'' said Boston police spokeswoman Det. Sgt. Margot Hill. ``Banging on car doors, screaming at pedestrians.''
Laws in place since 1991 require bike messengers to wear a large number as they pedal through the city, making it easy to report a pedaling road warrior.
But since then, the number of couriers has exploded from 150 to over 500, and many of them don't wear their numbers.
``If a person is violated by one of these couriers and can't report it, it's almost impossible to enforce the law against these people,'' Hill said.
Until the new ordinance is in place, Hill suggested businesses take a careful look at the couriers they use. They should check out whether their couriers are registered with the city, and how many complaints have been lodged against them.
If you have comments or suggestions, email me at messvilleto@yahoo.com