City of Richmond swaps bike lane parking citations for penalty-free warnings in April

The City of Richmond announced a temporary initiative to address illegal parking in designated bike lanes — swapping citations out for fee-free warnings. The city’s rollout of “friendly reminder” flyers will run throughout April. On May 1, standard $65 citations will tag back in.

Richmond Police posted the initial announcement video to social media yesterday, April 1 — April Fools’ Day. The timing prompted enough prank inquiries from online commenters that we dialed up the city to double-check.

Elise here: I spent about 10 minutes on three separate phone calls with the city to confirm it wasn’t an April Fools’ joke.

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Image via the City of Richmond, edited for size via Canva

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Image via the City of Richmond, edited for size via Canva

Click the arrow above to see the back of the warning notice, which features a message from Mayor Danny Avula.

If you’re new to the Richmond bike scene or due for a refresher, visit our readers’ beginner-friendly guide for safety tips and local route recommendations.