Frustrated NYC Biker Uses YouTube To Spread Message Of Bike Lane Issues
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A frustrated bike rider intentionally crashed into trucks, taxis, and even a police car on camera, but there was a message behind the two-wheeled madness that's become a sensation on YouTube.
It's the ticket that launched a viral video sensation – Manhattan filmmaker Casey Neistat was fined for riding outside of the bike lanes.
In his video, he made a painful point about blocked bike lanes, riding directly into the various obstructions blocking them, reports CBS 2's Tony Aiello.
"They look much more dramatic than they were – the falls," Neistat said.
In two days, Neistat's video has netted more than 700,000 hits on YouTube.
"Everything we found, I crashed into," he said. "I refused to leave the bike lane."
It all began on a rainy day in May, when Neistat was ticketed while riding his bike on Second Avenue.
"I don't feel like the bike lanes are really respected yet," Neistat said.
He believes the NYPD is wrong to ticket riders outside lanes because the bike lanes are blocked on a regular basis.
Neistat spent an hour showing what strict adherence to bike lanes can lead to, crashing into cars, cones and other assorted obstructions.
CBS 2 asked the mayor about Neistat's ticket.
"I don't know if we gave a ticket out that we shouldn't have," Mayor Bloomberg said. "I haven't seen the video, but generally speaking, you have to obey the laws."
The law stipulates that riders must use bike lanes "whenever a usable path or lane for bicycles has been provided."
For Neistat, the key word is "usable" and he ends his video with a point about the NYPD.
"I hope in time, when people see a bike lane, they're like, 'well, it's a bike lane, I can't obstruct that,'" he said.
He made his point in dramatic fashion, saving a crash into an NYPD cruiser – which was blocking a bike lane – for last.
Neistat said he didn't end up with any injuries, but with a bent fork, his bike is no longer road-worthy. He said his experience as a skateboarder taught him how to take a tumble safely off a bicycle.
Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below.
