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Streetsblog NYC: Policy Change: NYPD Will Write Criminal Summonses, Not Traffic Tickets, for Cyclists
Streetsblog NYC - Policy Change: NYPD Will Write Criminal Summonses, Not Traffic Tickets, for Cyclists
Quietly, the NYPD has changed its policy and will now make criminal cases against cyclists who go through red lights, a change that will have predictable and unpredictable ramifications.
By Kevin Duggan
12:05 AM EDT on May 2, 2025
Green means go, red means go ... directly to criminal court.
The NYPD has changed its enforcement policy towards bicyclists, slapping them with criminal summonses instead of regular traffic tickets for low-level offenses such as passing through red lights or not stopping at a stop sign — a policy the Finest quietly launched this week under the guise of responding to "quality of life" complaints.
NYPD previously would hand out so-called B summonses, a traffic ticket that allowed people to pay a $190 fine or contest the ticket at a virtual Department of Motor Vehicles hearing. But under the new regime, the criminal summonses will require suspects to show up in person in criminal court — potentially flooding the courthouse with thousands of new cases, each potentially requiring the arresting officer to show up.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said new citywide strategy is meant to target "out of control" e-bikes and mopeds only, but it's already ensnaring legal riders who aren't even on electric mobility.
Cyclists have increasingly reported cases on Reddit forums of cops stopping them and other riders this week. And one woman told Streetsblog she got a red light ticket even though she legally went through the red light ... and she was on a regular bicycle, not an electrified one.
/snip
Quietly, the NYPD has changed its policy and will now make criminal cases against cyclists who go through red lights, a change that will have predictable and unpredictable ramifications.
By Kevin Duggan
12:05 AM EDT on May 2, 2025
Green means go, red means go ... directly to criminal court.
The NYPD has changed its enforcement policy towards bicyclists, slapping them with criminal summonses instead of regular traffic tickets for low-level offenses such as passing through red lights or not stopping at a stop sign — a policy the Finest quietly launched this week under the guise of responding to "quality of life" complaints.
NYPD previously would hand out so-called B summonses, a traffic ticket that allowed people to pay a $190 fine or contest the ticket at a virtual Department of Motor Vehicles hearing. But under the new regime, the criminal summonses will require suspects to show up in person in criminal court — potentially flooding the courthouse with thousands of new cases, each potentially requiring the arresting officer to show up.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said new citywide strategy is meant to target "out of control" e-bikes and mopeds only, but it's already ensnaring legal riders who aren't even on electric mobility.
Cyclists have increasingly reported cases on Reddit forums of cops stopping them and other riders this week. And one woman told Streetsblog she got a red light ticket even though she legally went through the red light ... and she was on a regular bicycle, not an electrified one.
/snip