The NYPD has declared war on reckless bicyclists, slapping cyclists with summonses for everything from riding on the sidewalk to near-misses with pedestrians to disobeying traffic signals and other rules of the road.
‘Fine’ Day for Biking
The NYPD has declared war on reckless bicyclists, slapping cyclists with summonses for everything from riding on the sidewalk to near-misses with pedestrians to disobeying traffic signals and other rules of the road.
On the Upper East Side, cops issued 360 summonses from July 8 to Aug. 8, or about 11 a day, police said.
During the previous 30-day period, cops slapped cyclists with 240 summonses, or about eight a day. Reckless cyclists are the No. 1 quality-of-life complaint in the area, police said.
“The elderly pedestrians feel like they are taking their lives in their hands, even when they have a green light,” said a top police official.
The summonses require a court appearance, and the fines are set at the discretion of the judge — but they usually begin at about $50 for first offenders.
Christopher Reid, 40, of Brooklyn, said, “There are lots of kids and strollers, and it’s reckless for bikes to be on the sidewalk.” Deliverymen are the worst offenders, he said.
But Sara Williams, 34, of the East Village, described the crackdown as “unfair.”
“I feel bad for these delivery guys,” she said. “Would you want to ride in the street with these crazy cabs?”
Citywide, police have issued 15,455 summonses to cyclists so far this year.
Renegade
About freaken time. these cyclists act like the rules of the road don’t apply to them and they can ride wherever and however they like.
(wow, I’m actually supporting the cops on a ticket blitz, I never would’ve thought this day would come…)
concerned
do u have kids renegade??? evidently not. imagine ur kid having to bike to yeshiva or to the park in the middle of busy street. bare in mind, most of the streets here in ch dont have bicycle lanes…
nos
they should make cordoned off bike lanes and then it will be just like cars and pedestrians cars on the street pedestrians on thje sidewalk and bikes in the bike lane
hlk;l
maybe there should be away for them to ride, road to dangerous and sidewalk where should they ride on air
Renegade
@“concerned”
do your kids ride their bikes with blatant disregard of traffic laws? do they blow right through red lights expecting any cars coming to stop for them? do they ride smack in the middle of the road instead of off to the side where cars can pass them? do they ride in a traffic lane on a street that has a bike lane?
I’ll guess probably not -although they probably are the ones I need to worry about running over my kids when they walk on the sidewalk on kingston ave…