Pesky Cyclists Still Pissing Off New York Post
There's a short article in today's New York Post full of ill will for the annoying bicycle riders that hog New York City streets and parks. Or that's how the paper paints the nuisances, who "not wanting to spoil their 'fun,' recklessly blow through red lights in Central Park." The tabloid, of course, is also home to columnist Steve Cuozzo, who has scrapped with cyclists before, and today can gloat about the 230 tickets written so far this year for riders in Central Park "for ignoring traffic signals and other violations," as they "tear around" the loop. As anyone who's ridden around the park knows, there are about as many red lights on the path as puns in an edition of the Post, so a "legal" ride, even with no pedestrians, would have more stop-and-gos than a Cathie Black schoolboard meeting. But the Post persists!
In addition to the constant framing of cyclists as reckless, the Post throws a more novel accusation at riders, all but calling them rich elitists. Before they get a chance to defend themselves, they're subjected to this pissy aside, which we've highlighted, because the Post wasn't allowed to print it in ALL CAPS as they'd probably hoped:
The cyclists -- many who whom tool around in sporty bikes that sell for up to $10,000 -- see things differently.
Later, Central Park rider Michael Bar is "stopped for riding his $6,000 Merlin bike outside the designated lane," just before he "bellyached" about the strict enforcement. Real New Yorkers, you see, follow rules and heart pollution.
Tix blitz on Central Pk. cyclists [NYP via Animal NY]
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