New Orleans is becoming overrun with ATVs. They are becoming increasingly common even on the Interstates and the French Quarter. The ATVs often dart in and out of traffic doing stunts.

From WWL-TV:

Off-road vehicles on city streets has been an ongoing problem in New Orleans for years. Four wheelers and dirt bikes doing stunts on busy roads, even the interstate and French Quarter, is a common sight.

“I was looking down at my phone sending a text message when I heard the vehicles coming down the street,” New Orleans resident Kim Weikum said.

When Weikum looked up, she saw a large group of people on four wheelers and dirt bikes riding down Decatur Street.

“Probably 15 dirt bikes coming down the street. Then, right behind them were the ATVs all popping wheelings, revving their engines, swerving between traffic,” Weikum said.

The ATVs have even caused some deaths. Two weeks ago, the crash of a stolen ATV resulted in deaths on Chef Menteur Highway.

The ATVs are not street legal in New Orleans. But residents are still stealing them and driving them in city streets. Part of this is, of course, the fact that the New Orleans police department is undermanned. They do not have enough officers to enforce quality of life issues such as ATVs on the Interstate.

But a lot of the reason why ATVs are being driven in the city of New Orleans is that there is no respect for the rule of law. There is no reason to obey the law in the minds of many. Much of that is because the family has been destroyed in the city due to lawlessness created by a city that refuses to enforce its and the growth of welfare programs.

Cracking down on ATVs is a welcome first step in making New Orleans livable again. However, there are other issues that must be addressed such as a high violent crime rate and crumbling streets. Once they have rid New Orleans of the scourge of dirt bikes, maybe they’ll address those issues.