By Leslie Koren

The Washington Times, October 2, 1998

This is true: District residents must register their bicycles with city police within 14 days of buying the cycle, or risk a fine. Same goes for newcomers to the city: Register the bike within 14 days of moving in or face a fine.

It costs $1 for a five-year bicycle registration.

It's a District law that is almost universally ignored, and with good reason: Few if any bike owners are ever slapped with the $5 fines imposed on violators.

D.C. police Lt. James Cullen of the 2nd District will have his officers begin enforcing the law this month. He's tired of the 45 ownerless bikes recovered by police that clutter his district police station and frustrated that he can rarely match a found bicycle with its rightful owner.

Lt. Cullen is organizing a bicycle registration drive in the 2nd District, which includes Georgetown, Glover Park, Woodley Park and Cleveland Park. He has ordered his officers to start citing persons riding unregistered bikes after the registration push is over.

But cyclists grumble that registering their bikes doesn't stop them from being stolen.

"There's really not too many chances they're gonna find it," said bike messenger Mike Wilson on a delivery in Georgetown.

"You've got enough rules and regulations out here so I wouldn't take the time to do it," said Mr. Wilson, 24.

Several years ago, Lt. Cullen served on an enhanced enforcement team that focused on bicycle registration in the District's downtown.

"There was a lot of eye rolling and people didn't think it would do much," Lt. Cullen said, but he adds that crime decreased significantly in the area. "Part of that was looking at the little things."

The new plan coincides with Chief Charles H. Ramsey's call for greater focus on quality-of-life crimes, though Lt. Cullen planned his effort before the chief publicized his idea.

Bicycle registration enables police to detain bikers and if rider and registration don't match up, to arrest the rider. Police can impound unregistered bicycles. [sounds like another excuse to stop people at random and check them out-M]

The crackdown leaves some cycling enthusiasts cold.

"A lot of people tend not to register their bikes because they feel it really doesn't make a difference," said Michael Hwang, 29, who manages Big Wheel Bikes in Georgetown. He commutes daily from Dupont Circle to Georgetown on his unregistered bike.

"Bikes have been recovered. We do hear stories like that," said Ellen Jones, the director of Washington Area Bicyclist Association.

"I don't think you should rely on bike registration to recover a stolen bike. Registering your bike is one thing in an array of things that a savvy cyclist should do to protect their bicycle," she said.

Police in the 2nd District will aggressively enforce the registration law.

"If they run a red light, we'll stop them for the red light violation and we'll ask them to see the registration," Lt. Cullen said.

REGISTER THAT BIKE

D.C. law requires residents to register their bicycles. Police in the 2nd District will enforce the law after a registration drive this month.

REQUIREMENT: Register bicycles within 14 days of moving into the city or purchasing a bicycle
COST: $1

TERM OF REGISTRATION: Five years

FINE FOR NOT REGISTERING: Impoundment. Violators must pay $5 to get bike back, plus a $1 registration fee

POLICE OFFICERS WILL REGISTER BIKES AT THE FOLLOWING SPOTS:

* Safeway on the 5500 block of Connecticut Avenue NW

* Safeway at 42nd Street and Wisconsin Avenue NW

* Safeway on the 4800 block of MacArthur Boulevard NW

* In front of the National Zoo, 3000 block of Connecticut Avenue NW

TIMES, DATES: Officers will be at each of the locations Oct. 14, 15, 16 from 3 p.m. until 9 or 10 p.m. and Oct. 17 and 18 from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

REQUIREMENTS: Bicycles must have working brakes, a safety bell and a light

Source: Metropolitan Police Department