She's in full cartroll.
Queens Council Member Joann Ariola, a recidivist reckless driver, mocked her own constituents as they marched in single-digit temperatures to protest an Adams administration decision to allow cars back into Forest Park.
Ariola drove several loops on Freedom Drive — the roadway that had long been off-limits to cars only to be reopened for car use late last year — then stared down the activists from the front seat of her climate-controlled Lincoln Corsair, which has been nabbed 38 times by city speed- and red-light cameras since 2017, according to city records.
Ariola was caught on camera idling and advancing on the 75 pro-park community members — many of them children — as they marched from P.S. 66 to Giovanelli Playground at Freedom Drive and Park Lane South.
The safety advocates were chanting “car free Freedom Drive” as Ariola waited impatiently for them to cross the street, and even advanced her car in the direction of the children.
Later, she posted a gloating Instagram story celebrating the "freedom" to drive inside what had previously been safe space, complete with the accompaniment of the Rascal Flatts' song, "Life is a Highway."
One of the protest leaders said he was shocked by Ariola's behavior.
"We had invited her to attend the rally and speak, but instead of being an adult and speaking, she trolled us by driving around the neighborhood to be antagonistic," said Andy Smith of Safe Streets Richmond Hill. "I would call it childish and adolescent. We're all still trying to understand her motivation. It's not becoming of an elected official to be antagonistic like this."
Ariola did not respond to several messages via email, text and social media. In the past, she has argued that the roadway should be open all year for car drivers as an alternative to the many routes available to drivers. Under the Adams administration compromise, the Parks Department made the roadway available to drivers between October and April, which it calls "the off-season."
One safe parks advocate said Ariola's video — which showed hers as the only car on the roadway — reveals how little the road is needed.
"[Her video] underscored how little the road is actually used by drivers, and her record of dozens of school-zone speed camera violations highlights exactly why a park road next to a playground and two blocks from two elementary schools would benefit from being permanently car-free," Kathy Park Price of New Yorkers for Parks told Streetsblog.
Today in Richmond Hill, 75+ neighbors showed up to march and rally for a permanently car-free Freedom Dr. in Forest Park. Locals families, kids, older adults, runners, cyclists, and disability justice leaders shared why they need people-first park roads. pic.twitter.com/ZmiSyfhnUl
— Kathy Park Price (@KathyParkPrice) February 6, 2026
Ariola once called supporters of a car-free park "all or nothing radicals," but Smith made clear that he is not seeking to eliminate cars from anywhere but the park.
"I own a car," he told Streetsblog. "I drive to Trader Joe's to get groceries. But I won't use Freedom Drive because it is so much better for my kids and others to be able to explore the park or go to the field safely. I am not a 'Get rid of cars' person. But freedom drive is not necessary for cars. People were still getting around the neighborhood without it."
He also took exception with the idea that the late fall and winter are "off season" in city parks.
"People use that park all year," he said. "The longer it was closed to cars, the more people discovered it."
Streetsblog reached out to Council Speaker Julie Menin to see if she is considering disciplinary action against Ariola, but we did not hear back.
