NEW BEDFORD — A New Bedford man has been arrested and charged for riding an unregistered dirt bike after police said officers saw him speeding down the wrong side of the road, then crashing.

James Luis Berrios-Alvarez, 21, of Cottage Street is charged with unlicensed and reckless operation of a motor vehicle, operating an unregistered motor vehicle on a public way, and speeding.

Police said on Friday, officers patrolling East Rodney French Boulevard near Hudson Street saw a dirt bike moving fast on the wrong side of the road.

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The officers pursued the dirt bike when the driver, later identified as Berrios-Alvarez, allegedly lost control of the bike and drove it onto the grass in front of a Rodney Street home.

According to police, the bike had illegally attached plates and was unregistered and uninsured.

Berrios-Alvarez's arrest came just one day after New Bedford police arrested another city man for recklessly operating an unregistered/uninsured dirt bike when he allegedly crashed into a car.

In early June, the city's police department announced an initiative to clamp down on illegal recreational vehicle use, called Operation Safe Streets.

Residents with any information on illegal vehicles or those riding them are asked to contact New Bedford police.

Watch recreational vehicles traveling down a New Bedford street in 2016:

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