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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The Los Angeles City Council Public Safety Committee today advanced a motion seeking an ordinance that would prohibit bicycle ``chop shops'' on public property.
The motion, which was introduced by Councilman Joe Buscaino, passed 4-1, with Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson dissenting. Harris-Dawson did not speak about the motion during the meeting, and his office did not immediately respond to questions about the basis for his no vote.
The motion will next be reviewed by the Public Works Committee before reaching the full City Council.
The motion calls on the city attorney to prepare an ordinance similar to one already in effect in Long Beach to prohibit the assembly, disassembly, sale, offer of sale, distribution of bicycles and bicycle parts on public property or within the public right-of-way.
``Thousands of residents in our city rely on bicycles as their primary means of transportation,'' Buscaino said in a statement after the vote.
``The proliferation of bicycle chop shops on our streets creates a public safety hazard, and the fact that they currently operate with impunity only encourages the increasing theft of bicycles. This motion will finally provide consequences for this criminal activity which will lead to a decrease in bicycle thefts.''
Buscaino claimed that the bicycles being disassembled and sold for parts are ``most often'' stolen.