Cops Slap Brooklyn Cyclist with Tickets Totaling Over $1,500, Making Him an Example For the Rest of us

How many times have you coasted through a red light or two on your Schwinn with no consequences?  We all do it from time without a second thought.  One Brooklyn man recently learned the hard way that the strong arm of the law may strike swiftly when you least expect it.   

The story goes like this: a Brooklyn hipster woke one morning up last month, relaxed then combed his beard, enjoyed a nice French Press, tight-rolled his chain-side pant leg and set off on his fixed gear.  During a romantic trek through Williamsburg he ran three red lights WHILE wearing headphones in both ears.  Finally, the police intervened, slapping him with tickets totaling $1,555. Here’s what the cyclist had to say for himself:

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2012 Will Bring Tougher Safety Rules for Cyclists

 Photo via streetsblog.orgWe've spent a lot of time on this blog bitching about the wars between cyclists and pedestrians. As FiPS writer Ursula once wrote, "Every time I hear about a pedestrian/cyclist accident I think, "How can that be? We're on the same team!" The team of people who feel bullied and oppressed by cars in this city, that is. But then I remember all the times I've been nearly mowed over by a cyclist going the wrong way down a one way street, or disregarding traffic signals entirely to zip through a red light without the slightest regard for those of us on foot."

Earlier this month, there was a massive crackdown on cyclists in Prospect Park. A tipster wrote in, claiming she'd witnessed "9 bikers get tickets within 10 minutes for whizzing past the red light near the lake." This kind of policing on cyclists is likely to increase in the new year. James Vacca, chair of the City Council Transportation Committe, has promised to push through tougher laws for cyclists, and to strictly reinforce the current laws. 

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