UWPD officers are beginning to clamp down on bicycle safety laws, enforcing fines for everything from not wearing your helmet to "unsafe/negligent" speeding. Most offenses will get you a $103 fine, while not wearing your helmet garners a $30 ticket.

Cyclists should obey these laws for the most part — a little safety never hurt anyone.

However, ambiguous rules may do more harm in the long run. In particular, the law on speeding opens itself up to subjective law enforcement.

Who is to determine what is "a speed greater than that which is responsible?" And how are cyclists supposed to know what these speed limits are?

Unlike with automobile drivers, cyclists don't see speed limit signs posted. They don't go through bicycling driver's education to get some sort of bicycle license. And they aren't required to have a speedometer, measuring how fast they are going.

Strict measures are in place to ensure that car drivers and passengers are safe, and the most effective of these laws are usually preventative: Wear a seatbelt. Don't drink and drive. You aren't even allowed to drive until you reach a certain age.

On the other hand, anyone can own and ride a bike. Rules on how to do so have been lacking, and what's worse, the laws that are in place are ambiguous and inaccessible.

What's to stop a police officer for ticketing a little kid who he deems to be pedaling faster than is "responsible"? How is the kid supposed to know how fast he or she should go at different locations?

If there are rules in place to punish lawbreakers, there need to be ways for cyclists to be informed of these rules. Otherwise, the laws appear to be pointless and arbitrary — issuing tickets won't stop bicycle accidents before they happen.