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    COMMENTARY: Bike Safety: Engineering, Education and Enforcement

    Ross Sandler

    Ross Sandler, Center for New York City Law Director

    The City aggressively attacks unsafe conditions for bike riders on the City’s streets and avenues, but less successfully attacks unsafe behaviors of bike riders. Unsafe conditions can mostly be engineered away, but unsafe behaviors require changes of a cultural nature. The City in 2019 experienced 28 bike rider deaths and more than 4,000 bike injuries. So far 2020 has experienced more bike injuries than in 2019. To make the City safer for bike riders, the City should aggressively enforce the traffic laws against vehicles, but also aggressively enforce the rules against bike riders who ride against traffic, ignore traffic signals, speed, or text and talk on phones while riding. (read more…)

    Tags : Bike Safety, CityLaw, CityLaw Commentary, Transportation
    Date:04/03/2020
    Category : Commentary
    (4) Comment

    Bicycle Riding and Injuries, Tort Claims and Defenses

    Torts  •  Citywide

    Credit: CityLaw

    Bike riding is enjoyable, healthy and fun. It can also be dangerous. The City is heavily invested in encouraging bike riding and bike safety. Yet, accidents happen, and when they do bike riders may opt to sue. Bike riders receive no special status as tort plaintiffs. Bike riders in court live by the same rules that govern tort claims by pedestrians and car drivers. As New York courts have repeatedly stated, a “bicyclist is required to use reasonable care for his or her own safety, to keep a reasonably vigilant lookout for vehicles, and to avoid placing himself or herself in a dangerous position.” (read more…)

    Tags : Bicycles, Bike Safety, CityLaw, Torts
    Date:04/01/2020
    Category : CityLaw
    (1) Comment

    Improving Bicyclist Compliance With Traffic Laws

    Sam Schwartz & Gerard Soffian
    Vision Zero's success relies not only on motorists but also cyclists. Image Credit: CityLand.

    Vision Zero’s success relies not only on motorists but also cyclists. Image Credit: CityLand.

    Mayor de Blasio’s Vision Zero initiative to substantially reduce traffic fatalities can only be achieved if all users of our roadways respect traffic rules. This needs to include bicyclists for their own safety and for the safety of others. On the streets of New York City compliance by bicyclists is not the norm. They frequently do not stop for a red traffic light, and often are seen bicycling against traffic flow, riding on the sidewalk and committing other infractions. What is needed is a more rational and appropriate way to promote compliance. Past culture-changing efforts in the City such as cleaning up after your dog, banning fireworks and restricting cigarette smoking have been remarkably successful. Changing the behavior of bicyclists also can be accomplished, but only with a new approach.

    We recommend getting tougher and more lenient at the same time. Here’s how. (read more…)

    Tags : Bike Safety, Gerard Soffian, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Sam Schwartz, Vision Zero
    Date:08/20/2014
    Category : Commentary
    (6) Comment

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