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news
Video: Police tell New York City cyclist he may get summons – as he lies on ground immediately after being doored
A cyclist in New York City who was lying on the ground after being doored by a car driver was questioned by police officers over whether he had been riding in the bike lane – and was told that he may receive a summons.
The incident was filmed by another cyclist who had been following the Domino’s delivery rider along West 21st Street in the Chelsea district of Manhattan on Monday.
The footage shows the Domino’s cyclist leaving the bike lane just before he was doored by a motorist who opened the door of his van.
Gothamist reports that paramedics and police arrived on the scene within minutes, with one of the officers asking the cyclist who shot the footage, “Was he getting off right here?
“Because there's a bike lane here, so technically you're supposed to ride in the bike lane.”
Another officer asked the injured cyclist, who was apparently motionless on the ground: “Sir, were you in the bike lane?”
The officer added: “OK, we have to give him a summons for not driving in the bike lane.”
The cyclist who took the video, who wanted to remain anonymous, said afterwards: “He was nonresponsive to our many attempts to revive him, his eyes were closed.
“When the paramedics came he was more responsive, but still sluggish—slurred speech.”
He added that he saw the police officers writing, but did not know whether it was a summons.
Gothamist, which has contacted the New York Police Department (NYPD) says that under state law, cyclists are obliged to use bike lanes.
However, it adds that there are exceptions such as where the lane is blocked or when the cyclist is preparing to turn.
So far this year, 28 cyclists have been killed in New York City – a threefold increase on 2018 – and in two of those cases, the rider was the victim of a dooring.
According to Gothamist, neither of those cases resulted in action against the person opening the door.
Relations between the cycling community and New York Police Department have been strained due to the force reacting to cyclist fatalities by ticketing cyclists in the area in the following days.
During such operations, cyclists have even been fined for non-existent offences such as not wearing a cycle helmet, which is not a legal requirement for cyclists in the state.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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36 comments
I don't think you have stood up for the door opening driver enough yet.
Doing their bit to keep the streets safe from the scroflaw cyclists?
thats a shocker and he should have been prosecuted.
Incidentally I see that no one was prosecuted as the officers didn't actually witness the dooring or the cyclist not in the cycle lane.
Do the police have to witness an event in order to prosecute? That doesn't sound correct at all.
Also, why would the police say "OK, we have to give him a summons for not driving in the bike lane"?
this is in New york so
"In this instance, the NYPD is voiding the summons issued on Monday, November 25, to the bicyclist in the 13th Precinct," the NYPD said in a statement. "It appears that the bicyclist was riding outside the designated bicycle lane when he was struck by the car door. However, in accordance with NYPD guidelines and policies, an on-duty, uniformed officer working in his geographic assignment must personally witness a violation in order to issue a summons, even when video of the incident exists. In this case, no officer personally witnessed the incident. The video appears to show the motorist also in violation of state vehicle and traffic law but was not summonsed for the above reason."
I'd agree that its quite suprising .
Also, why would the police say "OK, we have to give him a summons for not driving in the bike lane"?
Because the police officer got that wrong.
I'm glad the cyclist isn't getting the summons, but it seems wrong that the motorist isn't penalised either. I guess that being the U.S., the cyclist will be expected to sue for damages instead.
Really?
And now I've watched the video and listened to the sound.
So the police officer only knows that he was in the bike lane and then veered out of the bike lane and was hit (thats what the witness said. te witness didn't know why he veered . He said the man opened the car door but didn't say and smacked the guy off his bike. That would have helped.) . Thats why they are discussing giving him a ticket because thats a law they have in NYC.
And in this case the headline on the article is deliberately provocative towards the police.
Surely dooring a cyclist is an offence in NYC as it is here in the UK too? And the NYC rules on cycle lane use are not quite so cut and dried as you seem to suggest. Also, it seem the driver has had other instances of insufficient care and attention paid to driving. Perhaps the cops need to rethink their strategy?
Seems fairly literal and accurate to me. What headline would you suggest?
Its implying that after reviewing all the evidence the police chose to charge the cyclist.
Thats clearly not what happening . The responding police are dealing with the evidence they have in front of them there and then. (the man speaking in the second video ) so they may charge the cyclist because on the evidence they have been given he is at fault. I'd expect once all the evidence is gathered they won't
Headline is still accurate then.
Would you prefer it to say "Police looking to issue summons to semi-concious doored cyclist as driver with 8 previous violations looks to blame cyclist for existing"
At that point they don't know he was doored and they probably don't know the driver history. HTH
How about Police tell New York City cyclist he may get summons –But it turned out he had been doored.
That sounds pretty similar to the actual headline - I think you're over-reacting to it.
To my mind, if someone is lying on the ground and in obvious pain/distress, the first instinct should be to help them or at least make sure they don't come to further harm (make the area safe). The first reaction shouldn't be to determine if they were jay-walking or cycling outside the bike lane.
Very clunky headline, that also carefully conceals key parts of the story. You do seem to bend over backwards to be sympathetic to the police. Has it occurred to you the bias may be on your part?
Possibly . Just looking for balance.
No, you are looking for sycophantically pro-police reporting. That's not balance.
Looking for fair reporting and also people reporting and commenting might actually want to gather facts before going off on one.
So, what headline would you suggest?
Unbefuckinlievable!
All ye clamouring for segregated cycling structure take note: They can and (plenty of countries) do pass legislation to make us use it. Leaving us even more vunerable when we ride on the road because the bike lanes are not fit for purpose.
Pathetic. Police are idiots all over the world.
You can ride outside the cycle lane if you deem it not to be safe, so if the guy was going to be alighting or turning right then you wouldn't want to be on the left as cutting across the road to make a turn would be dangerous/
here is the exact ordinance:
Title 34 of the Rules of the City of New York Section 4-12. It states:
(1) Bicycle riders to use bicycle lanes. Whenever a usable path or lane for bicycles has been provided, bicycle riders shall use such path or lane only except under any of the following situations:
(i) When preparing for a turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.
(ii) When reasonably necessary to avoid conditions (including but not limited to, fixed or moving objects, motor vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, pushcarts, animals, surface hazards) that make it unsafe to continue within such bicycle path or lane.
Also there’s a provision in that same statute that says “Bicyclists may ride on either side of one-way roadways that are at least 40 feet wide.” so if kurb to lurb it'sfeet then the cyclist can ride where they want even if there's a cycle lane and even if there's no apparent reason to the cyclist that they didn't want to ride in the cycle lane.
It's all discriminatory in any case.
Also read
http://animalnewyork.com/2013/fuck-what-you-heard-nyc-cyclists-are-not-b...
I suppose the cyclist should be thankful that the police didn't shoot him! Jeepers, what's going on over there?
I don't know, it is like a crazy, facinating horrow show.
Did the motorist show any concern at all for injuring the cyclist ... didn't look like it in the video. And what's with the NYPD, seemingly booking the cyclist while he lay on the ground onconcious and possibly dying of a brain bleed or the like. Perhaps the cyclist had moved over to that side of the road to get off at a shop and had to move around this parked car ... but can't exactly explain that when you're out cold. How about booking the driver for being a twat and opening their door into traffic without looking instead. So glad I don't live in America and NY in particular.
It seems not. In the Gothamist article there is another video of the driver arguing with other cyclists and it also states
"A scan of the license plate of the van shows eight separate violations, including running a red light."
Welcome to the Land of the free!
Coming soon to to this septer'd isle!
Well, at least the cyclist won't end up with a lifetime of debt just for being taken to hospital...
ACAB
They could have allowed them to have regained consiousness first though.
And why would I argue the polices case . Maybe for balance.
heres another quote from this thread.
"Pathetic. Police are idiots all over the world"
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