NYPD Targets Drivers Breaking Bike Lane Rules

This week, the NYPD is recognizing "Bike Month" by dispatching 1,500 officers to crack down on drivers who commit violations in bike lanes in all five boroughs.

Officers will focus on cars that park in bike lanes and drivers who text while driving.

East Village resident Alex Vitkevicus, who said he's biked in the city for 55 years, doubted a one-week crackdown will change the routine of truck drivers who regularly block bike lanes. "There are the big trucks doing deliveries on the bike lane and actually you have to go in the avenue with the cars and pretty much ride at their pace to be safe," he said. 

At Second Avenue and East Houston Street — one of the locations the NYPD said it will be watching for violations — Vera Dvorak, 35, said she's glad the NYPD is doing something. She bikes her child to kindergarten everyday. "I think it's great because sometimes it can be quite dangerous," she said. "Especially on this road."

Thomas Chan, Chief of the NYPD's Transportation Bureau, said he hopes the crackdown will make the streets safer at a time of year when cycling increases.

"We believe that through education, through engineering and enforcement we can certainly make it safer for all our pedestrians, our bicyclists and also our motorists throughout the city," Chan said.

He said while the focus is on drivers, cyclists who violate traffic rules could also be ticketed.