Criminal Summonses Being Issued in NYC for Biking Violations
Back in April, the NYPD announced a new enforcement policy in which officers would issue criminal summonses for certain biking violations. Now, more cyclists, most of whom are using e-bikes, are ending up in criminal court for traffic infractions.
NYPD’s New Enforcement Policy for Biking Violations
Prior to the policy change, NYPD would issue traffic tickets for cyclists who allegedly committed traffic violations. In these cases, cyclists could plead guilty or request a hearing with a DMV administrative law judge. Those hearings can be conducted virtually and wouldn’t require an appearance in criminal court.
However, under the new policy, NYPD cops are targeting particular violations and issuing C summonses. These summonses for the biking violations require the bicyclist to appear in criminal court to answer the charge. According to the NYPD, officers target violations such as reckless driving, operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs, biking the wrong way, disobeying a red light, and failing to stop at a stop sign.
According to published reports, NYPD’s Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the strategy meant to target “out of control” e-bikes and mopeds only. There have also been claims that numerous complaints have been received via 311 and 911. Those complaints are about motorized devices driving recklessly or being on sidewalks. Indeed, NYC Mayor Eric Adams has proposed a 15 mile per hour speed limit on e-bikes.
Concerns Over Criminal Summonses Being Issued for Biking Violations
As with any change in policy, there has been pushback from the biking public. For example, anecdotal claims have been published about cyclists being issued biking violations for completely legal behavior. Since 2019, cyclists can cross an intersection when the pedestrian walk signal is flashed – even when vehicle traffic has a red light. However, some cyclists have received red light tickets in these situations.
Additionally, cyclists feel that the move disproportionately targets them when motor vehicles are truly responsible for causing most pedestrian injuries. According to NYPD statistics, in 2024, there were 179 reported e-bike collisions which resulted in 37 pedestrian injuries. When considering that 9,610 pedestrians were injured in that year, e-bike riders caused only 0.4 percent of pedestrian injuries.
The change in policy is also clogging up the criminal courts. In the first quarter of 2025, only 561 criminal summonses were issued to cyclists. Now, that number jumped to nearly 6,000 in the second quarter. Moreover, the policy is concerning for the delivery workers who use e-bikes, many of whom are immigrants. The fear is that bringing immigrants to criminal court will put them in the crosshairs of federal immigration enforcement officials.
References:
- Kevin Duggan, “Policy Change: NYPD Will Write Criminal Summonses, Not Traffic Tickets, for Cyclists,” Streets Blog NYC (May 2, 2025); available at: https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2025/05/02/policy-change-nypd-will-write-criminal-summonses-not-traffic-tickets-for-cyclists (last accessed July 23, 2025).
- Samantha Liebman, “With summonses mostly dismissed, advocates question criminal e-bike enforcement,” Spectrum News NY1 (June 10, 2025); available at: https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/traffic_and_transit/2025/06/10/with-summonses-mostly-dismissed–advocates-question-criminal-e-bike-enforcement (last accessed July 23, 2025).
- Paige Oamek, “NYC cyclists see tenfold increase in criminal summonses under NYPD push,” Gothamist (July 23, 2025); available at: https://gothamist.com/news/nyc-cyclists-see-tenfold-increase-in-criminal-summonses-under-nypd-push (last accessed July 23, 2025).
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