Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Bike Lanes

Man Beaten Up in Bike Lane…For Trying to Ride in the Bike Lane

Cops collared this perp after he allegedly pummeled a cyclist. Photo: Tom Flash

A driver was arrested on Tuesday morning for beating up a cyclist who had the temerity to ask him to move his car out of the newly painted protected bike lane on Ninth Street.

Tom Flaschen was moving westbound on the new Park Slope lane when he encountered the obstruction between Fourth and Fifth avenues. That obstruction was a fancy Chevy Traverse.

https://twitter.com/PimmBru/status/1039534193754169345

Flaschen picks up the story here:

He was blocking the bike lane, so I tapped on his rear window. He got out and yelled at me angrily and loudly and was very threatening, but then got back into his car. So I tapped on the glass again. I don't know why exactly, but I guess I was fed up with having the bike lane blocked. People are trying to get to work and they're trying to get there safely. I guess I wasn't in the mood to let it slide.

But this time, the driver got out of the car and spoke with his fist.

"He punched me," Flaschen said. "In retrospect, I wouldn't tap on the glass a second time. This guy was clearly insane."

The impact of the fist cut open Flaschen's lip, but he was able to call 911, despite the blood on his phone. Officers arrived and arrested the driver, later identified by police as Chris Chernak, 46, of 51st Street in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn. Chernak was charged with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail. He could not be reached for comment before publication.

The city's traffic database showed Chernak's vehicle had been written up 42 times for parking and camera violations, including seven red-light violations and seven school-zone speeding infractions. He's also parked at a fire hydrant at least three times and blocked bus lanes at least seven times, the data show.

Flaschen received multiple stitches at nearby Methodist Hospital. He now says he's less certain about challenging bike lane blockers.

"I don't know any more," he said. "I have done it before without incident because most people are polite and quickly move along. Clearly this guy was not in that category."
Flaschen was surprised to hear that Chernak was charged.
"If he had hit me with his car instead of his fist, he probably wouldn't have been arrested," he added, noting that drivers who kill pedestrians or cyclists are rarely charged when they claim it was an "accident."

It's not the first controversy for the new protected bike lane on Ninth Street, which was hastily built after two children were mowed down by a driver in March. Last month, Liz Plosser left her "sweet Subaru" in the bike lane when she went on vacation, causing a neighborhood uproar that reverberated far beyond mere rudeness into questions about why it's cheaper in New York City to get two no-parking tickets than it is to put your car in a garage for a week.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Ugly Truth: Feds’ Canal Street Raid Pushed Aside NYPD, Safety and Free Speech

President Trump's heavily armed and masked immigration troops are turning American cities into battlegrounds — and eliminating accountability and free speech in the public realm.

October 27, 2025

Bikelashers Beware! Court Street Redesign Has Turned Chaos to Safety

Court Street's protected bike lane already shows a lot of promise. But that doesn't stop the hate.

October 27, 2025

Adams Administration Has Made It Nearly Impossible To Build Safe E-Bike Charging Stations

It's impossible to build an e-bike charging cabinet in NYC, despite city initiatives meant to boost the industry.

October 27, 2025

That’s Rich! DoorDash Supports E-Bike Speed Limit

DoorDash supports a 15-mile-per-hour speed limit, but that's easy for them to say, given that under-pressure workers will be the ones getting tickets.

October 27, 2025

Monday’s Headlines: Everybody to the Limit Edition

Mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani wants to keep the 15-mph Citi Bike e-bike speed limit. Plus more news.

October 27, 2025

Friday Video: Amtrak Is Way More Successful Than You Think

Why do so many people still treat Amtrak as a failure — and what would it take to deliver the rail investment that American riders deserve?

October 24, 2025
See all posts