Motorcycle Only Checkpoints: Are they legal and should they be tolerated?

Motorcycle only checkpoints continue to be controversial and in one state, they may even wind up in the Supreme Court.  New York has had the motorcycle only checkpoints in operation for some time and the complaints from bikers keep coming in. A number of bikers are suing the state over the so-called safety stop/check point. That case could go all the way to the highest court for a determination.  Critics say the stops have little or nothing to do with safety and are being used as a fact gathering tool for law enforcement and to harass bikers over the helmet they are wearing or over the height of the handlebars or or noise of the exhaust.

Some compare the safety checkpoints to sobriety checkpoints. Sobriety checkpoints are allowed in most of the United States but twelve states do not allow them; Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Rhode Island and Alaska. The motorcycle only checkpoints are used to check for proper registration, helmet, insurance, DUI and a quick check of equipment like worn tires, etc.  It also affords the law enforcement officer the opportunity to lecture the rider on different topics concerning safe motorcycle operation. This is hardly what one would think is appropriate at such stops and certainly lends to more than acceptable limits of detention. This raises the question about what is a reasonable amount of time to be delayed and will there be equal treatment between citizen riders and those wearing club affiliation insignia? Some bikers are already calling foul. Meanwhile, NHTSA is continuing to offer grant money to states interested in initiating motorcycle only check points in the name of safety.

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