Parks Department is issuing tickets to cyclists in Central Park

[Rolling15]

I just received this from The Car Free Central Park Campaign.

The Parks Department is issuing tickets to cyclists who go through red
lights in Central Park, even if the cyclists are yielding to
pedestrians in crosswalks.

While there is no excuse for cyclists who ride recklessly through red
lights without regard to the safety or rights of other park users, the
fact is that the lights were installed in the 1920s to control car
traffic and have nothing to do with using the park for recreation.
Nevertheless, Parks Dept. police are writing tickets even to cyclists who slow
at crosswalks and wait until all pedestrians have safely passed.
Forcing park users who are exercising to pointlessly wait at a light makes
no sense.

[Air]

Such bull crap.

[lebowitz]

Complete bull, if you stop and let people through and it's safe, why the ticket?

[Lucky07]

Don't they do that every Spring? For a week?

[Stacy]

Last week. maybe Friday, there was a Parks Department Officer giving verbal warnings, at a traffic light around East 95th Street on the East Drive, to any cyclist who ran a red light and stopped to listen to him. At least two cyclists just breezed through the light and past him when he called us over. This was probably around 6pm and they were setting up barriers for some parade that was to happen on 5th Avenue. I haven't seen them enforcing this since, there or anywhere else in the park.

[jyossarian]

This is how they open Bike Month. Free tickets for all!

[Turboem1]

Just a question on how the tickets work. Do they ask for id or anything? Since it is non auto related you do not need to give a liscense correct? I have heard that a lot of times when people use there driver id on bikes insurance finds out and thinks you were in your car.

[Air]

I *believe* that you need some sort of ID but if you don't have a driver's license they can't arrest you. So, have a credit card on you. I've also heard that it can go against your license, so it's better not to have your license on you.

I can't even see how this would hold up - with the amount lawyers in this city you'd think they'd call the constitutionality of traffic lights in a car-free area up to question.

[FixdGearHead]

They were issuing warnings last Spring/Summer regarding the "15 mph speed limit"...though I never heard of anyone actually receiving a ticket.

I ride the loop during the weeknites - have never seen/received any sort of warning...strongly suggest avoiding the park entirely over the weekend, unless the weather is crappy.

[Bacciagalupe]

Meh. Sounds like TA is engaging in scare tactics to get people to push for a car-free park....

[Air]

No, they do actually do this every so often. Search around in this forum and there's a few threads on it.

[mediaavid]

Anyone know if they are ticketing pedestrians if they jaywalk when the light is red and the bikes have the green light?

[GuitarWizard]

What if you get off your bike and walk across like a pedestrian? :)

[Bob Ross]

What if you get off your bike and walk across like a pedestrian?

Or, what I've always wondered: What if you blow through the light at 25mph screaming "Bite me!" and flipping them the bird? It's not like any of the park police are in any shape to run after me, their little electric golf carts can barely hit 15mph, and I *seriously* doubt their infrastructure allows them to squander the resources necessary to engage a pursuit vehicle or two.

[Rolling15]

Or, what I've always wondered: What if you blow through the light at 25mph screaming "Bite me!" and flipping them the bird? It's not like any of the park police are in any shape to run after me, their little electric golf carts can barely hit 15mph, and I *seriously* doubt their infrastructure allows them to squander the resources necessary to engage a pursuit vehicle or two.

Nothing would aggravate them as much as the “bite me” remark. They would send in the mounted patrols for that biking indiscretion. They wait in the shadows for outbursts like that. :eek:

[robo]

They don't have to chase you.. they are all over the park and they have these things called 'radios'...