University Police enforcing walk zones on campus
Bicyclists and skateboarders running afoul of updated rules regarding walk zones on the Western Washington University campus are subject to ticketing as University Police ramp up their enforcement in an attempt to ensure the safety of pedestrians in heavily traveled areas of campus.
After two weeks of education (handing out fliers, issuing warnings) this quarter, officers have begun ticketing riders who violate the walk zone regulations or other parts of the code. Officers also have spent many weeks in past quarters getting out the word on pedestrian safety and walk zones. If voluntary compliance with the revised regulations doesn't improve, the university will consider adopting a ban of bicycles and boards on campus paths and walkways to protect pedestrian traffic.
The specifically designated walk zones are Red Square, Vendor's Row and the plaza between the Engineering Technology Building and the north side of Carver Gym. The hours of enforcement are 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. during the academic year.
Bicyclists and skateboarders outside the walk zones must observe a maximum speed limit of 3 miles per hour when sharing a path with pedestrians and 7 mph at all other times on campus.
"You definitely need to be cautious if there are people around," said University Police Chief Randy Stegmeier.
East College Way, which traverses the length of campus from Bill McDonald Parkway to Old Main, was repaved in August and designated a sharrow, meaning that it is to be shared by bicycles and motor vehicles. With the Miller Hall construction now complete, the road is once again completely open to traffic, and Stegmeier noted that the road has seen a marked increase in use by bikers. Skateboards are not permitted on any roadways on campus or in the city of Bellingham. Except in the walk zones, skateboards are permitted on campus pathways, but for transportation only.
According to the university’s rates and fees brochure, fines may be given for failure to use due care and caution, failure to stay in control, failure to obey the dismount policy, failure to yield right of way to pedestrians and riding on lawns or other restricted areas.
Citations carry fines of $15 for first-time offenders, $30 for second-time offenders and $60 for subsequent violations. Citations may be given for:
- Failure to use due care and caution.
- Failure to stay in control of bicycle.
- Failure to obey dismount policy.
- Failure to yield right of way to pedestrian.
- Riding on lawn or other restricted area.
The updated rules were crafted in recent years by the Central Health and Safety Committee, who had last updated the bicycle and skateboard policies in the mid 1990s. The committee began discussing changes to the policies by holding an open, campus-wide meeting in December 2005. The responses and information gathered were discussed with Dan Burden, an international expert in creating areas that are friendly to pedestrians and bicycles, during his visit to campus that month. Beginning in fall quarter 2006, the committee revised the existing bicycle and skateboard policies based on comments from Burden and the community. After several rounds of revisions and public meetings, the committee drafted policy impact statements that were then approved by the Executive Policy Group in November 2007. Policies were drafted in December 2007 and early January 2008 and approved in December 2008. Revisions to the Washington Administrative Code were adopted in July 2009.
Rules: