Photo: Terry Barentsen on YouTube
It’s not a secret anymore that New York City is trying to get rid of cars and trucks. The City that Never Sleeps has a renewed administration that plans on transforming the urban environment. Now, there is a new program in the making that aims to encourage citizens to help the Police with handing out more tickets. Here’s how it’s going to work if the proposed bill becomes law.
New York City is on a mission to make everyone visiting or living there more considerate of others and the environment. Currently, the Citizens Air Complaint Program allows New Yorkers to record trucks and buses that idle unnecessarily. Once the evidence is submitted according to the rules, the authorities verify if the relevant laws were broken, and they will apply the penalties.
But there’s another problem that persists – illegal parking. Many road lanes have been transformed into dedicated bicycle paths in an attempt to overhaul how people move, but NYC residents and others continue to leave their vehicles on them, blocking cyclists.
Not wanting to have Police constantly looking out for those who break the law, a new bill has been introduced to give people the power to help authorities ticket the bike-lane blockers. It copies the Citizens Air Complaint Program, but, instead of videos, the Police will need photos. The proposed penalty for leaving your car on the bicycle path is $175 and people who successfully submit a good picture that results in a ticket will get 25%. So, you’ll receive $43.75 for every penalty that is applied.
The same rules would apply to those drivers who leave their cars on the sidewalk, according to Bloomberg.
However, there are some concerns. A video recording is harder to forge, but a simple photo could be easily doctored to make someone pay for something they did not do. Or, in some cases, it could also lead to time wasted proving you were innocent all along.
Fortunately, the bill is still in the early stages and requires many more approvals before it is sent to the mayor. Some things could change by the time the document will require executive approval.
The New York City Government is trying to improve air quality since it is estimated that 6% of the yearly deaths are happening because of air pollution. However, it is important to remember that NYC has a major pollution problem that originates from burning fossil fuels for space and water heating. There is a long road ahead and many things need to change before the upsides of cutting pollution sources can be felt.
But there’s another problem that persists – illegal parking. Many road lanes have been transformed into dedicated bicycle paths in an attempt to overhaul how people move, but NYC residents and others continue to leave their vehicles on them, blocking cyclists.
Not wanting to have Police constantly looking out for those who break the law, a new bill has been introduced to give people the power to help authorities ticket the bike-lane blockers. It copies the Citizens Air Complaint Program, but, instead of videos, the Police will need photos. The proposed penalty for leaving your car on the bicycle path is $175 and people who successfully submit a good picture that results in a ticket will get 25%. So, you’ll receive $43.75 for every penalty that is applied.
The same rules would apply to those drivers who leave their cars on the sidewalk, according to Bloomberg.
However, there are some concerns. A video recording is harder to forge, but a simple photo could be easily doctored to make someone pay for something they did not do. Or, in some cases, it could also lead to time wasted proving you were innocent all along.
Fortunately, the bill is still in the early stages and requires many more approvals before it is sent to the mayor. Some things could change by the time the document will require executive approval.
The New York City Government is trying to improve air quality since it is estimated that 6% of the yearly deaths are happening because of air pollution. However, it is important to remember that NYC has a major pollution problem that originates from burning fossil fuels for space and water heating. There is a long road ahead and many things need to change before the upsides of cutting pollution sources can be felt.
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