The city of Springfield has long waged a campaign against illegal dirt bike riding. With warmer weather returning, it’s prompting officials to remind riders: keep your ATVs and dirt bikes off city streets.
Springtime: a time for pollen, warmer weather and for police in Springfield, Massachusetts, a chance to resume cracking down on dirt bikes in city neighborhoods.
With proper registration, there’s a number of places you can ride a dirt bike or ATV in Massachusetts. In fact, nearby Southwick is home to all kinds of Motocross racing.
But on Springfield streets, it’s a different story – one that prompts complaints from drivers and residents alike each year.
Illegal dirt bike riding in city makes seasonal return
“I've also heard [from] - just regular constituents driving down the street, and these illegal dirt bikers are weaving in and out of lanes and causing havoc, and we will not tolerate that here in the city of Springfield,” says Ward 5 City Councilor Lavar Click-Bruce.
Click-Bruce, Mayor Domenic Sarno and Springfield police gathered to discuss off-highway vehicles or OHVs Wednesday, March 26, holding a press conference carried by Western Mass News (who provided the audio to WAMC).
The mayor’s message to riders or would-be riders? Don’t do it.
“… we're going to come after you and we're going to catch you, we're going to get you,” Sarno said. “Are we going to get everyone? We're hopeful, but if not … we have knocked the numbers down.”
According to Sarno, as many as 53 OHVs were seized in 2023, in addition to 26 arrests. By comparison, last year’s numbers were down a tick – 39 seizures and 14 arrests.
Sarno and others say efforts to crack down on illegal OHV riding are only improving – so much so that Police Chief Larry Akers declined to detail what his department’s latest efforts entail to protect “tactical integrity.”
Police say the public calling 311 or the department’s traffic bureau to report illegal dirt bikes can help, but as Akers emphasized, going beyond that and trying to confront riders is a no-go.
“Please just be patient: don't confront anyone, just go about your business,” the police chief said. “They're out there to ride, o they're not just going to hang out where you are. They're going to go by, they're going to create the havoc or do whatever it is that they plan on doing, and then they're just going to keep it moving. Our number one priority is safety amongst our motoring public.”
Springfield’s not the only community that contends with illegal dirt bike riding – it’s an issue that even prompted mayors in Chicopee, Holyoke and the City of Homes to discuss the matter jointly together in the past.
Springfield city councilors also went as far as to pass an ordinance in 2021 allowing fines for local gas stations that sell fuel to dirt bike riders - $100 for each violation after an initial warning.
Hope for legislative solutions
Officials are also hoping for additional tools to deal with the matter. Sarno says he’s hopeful the council will file a home rule petition that, if approved by the council and the state legislature, would allow the department to destroy illegally-operated dirt bikes following their seizure – as opposed to the current system, which the mayor claims allows bikes to return back to riders, provided they have patience and can pay.
“… because what happens now is, when you confiscate these bikes, you have to hold them and then, legally… police have to put on an auction, and many times these same culprits will buy back those bikes,” Sarno said. “So, we really need the legislature to step forward, please.”
Click-Bruce says he’s been in contact with Springfield State Representative Orlando Ramos, who’s worked to address the issue himself while he served on the council, authoring the 2021 gas ordinance.
Hampden district State Senator Adam Gomez has also filed legislation dealing with off-road vehicles this session – one with language similar to the gas ban ordinance passed by the city council. It was referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation in February.
