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Speaker Quinn “Pleased” With NYPD’s New Biking Restrictions

11:12 AM EDT on October 19, 2006

spkquinn_150px.jpgDespite being slapped down in court a couple of times now, the NYPD is proposing yet another set of rules to restrict public gatherings aimed primarily at the bicyclists who meet for the monthly Critical Mass ride. According to yesterday's Times: 

The department is moving to require parade permits for groups of 10 or more bicyclists or pedestrians who plan to travel more than two city blocks without complying with traffic laws. It is also pushing to require permits for groups of 30 or more bicyclists or pedestrians who obey traffic laws.

So, for the NYPD, thirty cars and trucks clogging up two city blocks is "traffic." Thirty bikes rolling freely down those same two city blocks is "an illegal, un-permitted parade." (I suppose the entire city of Copenhagen needs to be arrested immediately).

OnNYTurf reports that City Council Speaker Christine Quinn is, sadly, throwing her political weight behind the new rules. You wonder what sort of horse-trading went into this one. In a statement released yesterday Quinn said:

The New York City Police Department's proposed regulations for when and what activities will require parade permits are a substantial improvement over regulations proposed earlier. We are very pleased that the NYPD was receptive to our suggestions for a practical approach to traffic and public safety issues.

Contact Speaker Quinn

Aaron Naparstek
AARON NAPARSTEK is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparstek’s journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. Naparstek is the author of "Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage" (Villard, 2003), a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the endless motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Prior to launching Streetsblog, Naparstek worked as an interactive media producer, pioneering some of the Web's first music web sites, online communities, live webcasts and social networking services. Naparstek is currently in Cambridge with his wife and two young sons where he is enjoying a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. He has a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Naparstek is a co-founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and the Grand Army Plaza Coalition. You can find more of his work here: http://www.naparstek.com.

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