Chaos in NJ streets as cops crack down on reckless ATV riders swarming neighborhoods

🚨Police in Trenton and Hamilton seized 19 illegal ATVs and issued 70 tickets

🚨Riders surrounded officers after a crash, then fled

🚨Strict new e-bike and motorized vehicle laws are fueling zero-tolerance enforcement

TRENTON — Another New Jersey police department is cracking down on all-terrain vehicle riders breaking New Jersey's tough revised rules.

Police Lt. David Ordille said a zero-tolerance policy is in effect in both communities following numerous complaints about reckless riders on the street. Nineteen off-highway vehicles were seized, 70 citations issued and five people were arrested during an illegal ATV/dirt bike operation in Trenton and Hamilton on Sunday.

"All were unregistered, uninsured, and observed operating recklessly on public roadways," Ordille said in a statement.

Things turned tense when a large group of riders surrounded police responding to a crash involving an ATV in the area of Oakland and Prospect Streets in Trenton. The riders then fled into Cadwalader Park, where the five arrests were made. Ordille said reports that a rider was run over or struck by police are false.

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New Jersey’s strict e-bike laws driving enforcement

Also recently, police in Berlin Borough confiscated off-road vehicles after receiving "an outrageous number of complaints" from residents fed up with roaring engines at all hours, torn-up lawns and riders racing through neighborhoods and private property.

It's a problem many communities face across the state: young riders on off-road vehicles and e-bikes, which prompted legislation signed by Gov. Phil Murphy before he left office, described as some of the nation's strictest for e-bikes and motorized bicycles.

The legislation classifies all motorized bicycles as e-bikes, including those with pedals and a motor. An owner and operator must now be at least 17 years old with a valid driver's license or at least 15 years old with a motorized bicycle license.

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