The New York Cycle Club is suing the city to put the brakes on enforcing a 15-mile-per-hour speed limit on the bike loop around Central Park.
The club argues that the city misapplied a state law that was meant to give it the power to reduce speed limits for drivers, not target cyclists with a speed reduction. Cyclists with the group say the speed limit would be an “existential” threat for competitive cyclists in the park and end up hurting casual riders too.
“The city is perverting the intent of Sammy’s Law, a law named after 12 yr old Sammy Cohen Eckstein who was tragically killed by a driver just outside of Prospect Park,” wrote the New York Cycle Club’s lawyer Peter Beadle in the complaint.
Sammy’s Law, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2024, authorized the city Department of Transportation to reduce speed limits to 20 mph across the city or to 15 mph in certain areas like school zones. The lawsuit argues that the statute specifies any 15 mph limit can be applied only to “motor vehicles.”
The city could have tried to pass such a speed limit through an administrative process that requires more extensive public notice and hearings, but opted to do it improperly through the state law, the suit says.
DOT spokesperson Vincent Barone said the city is looking forward to defending the policy in court.
“The new speed limit in Central Park — which applies equally to bikes and essential vehicles — aligns with the speed limit for e-scooters and e-bikes on city streets,” Barone said.
Cyclists with the club say what’s bad for the more dedicated, spandex-clad cyclists you might see exercising regularly in the park in the mornings will also affect the casual park rider.
“For the racing and recreational clubs, the 15 mph speed limit is essentially kicking us out of the park. For this group, that is existential,” said Neile Weissman, the club’s spokesperson.
The lawsuit argues that serious cyclists who use Central Park to train for competition or fitness operate by an etiquette known as the “Central Park Protocol,” which limits that activity in the early mornings or evenings when the parks are less crowded.
The speed limit would impact casual riders too because the inclines and descents on the park’s bike path means that there are multiple points where “any cyclist would exceed 15 miles-per-hour without pedaling,” Weissman said.
Though it’s not clear whether the city has officially started enforcement of the policy yet, it provided notice to community boards that it could start doing so by last weekend. The cyclists are asking Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Nicholas Moyne to annul the bike speed limit.
