Upstate NY Mayor: People Who Bike in the Winter “Should Be Arrested”

Mayor Jeffrey Graham of Watertown, New York (population 27,000), has an interesting way of expressing his concern for people out on the streets in these wintry conditions. Speaking on a local radio show, Graham let it slip that he doesn’t think too highly of folks who travel without a car in the snow.

At about 1:45 into the sound clip above, a caller leads Graham to digress from a discussion about shoveling sidewalks and describe what he thinks should happen to winter cyclists:

I know I’m gonna get in trouble for this: People who are on bicycles out on streets like this — they should be arrested. I mean, that is a clear and present danger that is being created and if you’re gonna sit there and make the argument that texting while driving is reckless, doing that is reckless and it creates a danger for them and the motorists. Unfortunately, they’ve got their — quote — rights, so they can do it.

The New York Bicycling Coalition responded on its Facebook page:

So if you live in Watertown and you don’t own a vehicle, and therefore you have to bike to work in order to provide for your family, you deserve to be arrested.

In case you’re wondering, the mayor’s comments came in response to a reference to a child riding a bike. It’s amazing that local police haven’t rounded up the reckless little tyke and thrown him in the slammer yet — in the name of public safety, of course.