Thanking the Pennsylvania General Assembly for passing Act 103, the "Putting the Brakes on Street Racing" bill

Thanking the Pennsylvania General Assembly for passing Act 103, the “Putting the Brakes on Street Racing” bill WHEREAS, Illegal street racing of both cars and offroad vehicles have been a growing public safety concern in Philadelphia for years; and WHEREAS, In November 2012, Philadelphia City Council passed then-Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown’s Bill No. 120725 to create tougher restrictions and increased penalties for riding or parking ATVs on public sidewalks or public property; and WHEREAS, Nine years later, City Council updated the city’s traffic code to classify dune buggies, ATVs and dirt bikes as illegal street vehicles with the goal to cut down on street racing, closing a loophole that prevented the Philadelphia Police Department from confiscating these vehicles and permitting ATVs used in these races to be destroyed to avoid their recirculation or re-selling on the black market; and WHEREAS, Councilman Mark Squilla passed Bill No. 210870 in 2021 prohibiting loud noise emanating from a motor vehicle, and adding to The Philadelphia Code a section authorizing the use of an automated noise camera system to detect noise violations; and WHEREAS, In July 2022, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed Act 92 prohibiting off-road vehicles from urban streets, providing penalties for violations thereof, and subjecting illegal street vehicles to asset forfeiture; and WHEREAS, Despite these efforts, Philadelphia continues to struggle to effectively police illegal street race…