NYPD cops’ habit of parking vehicles on the sidewalks – a common and annoying sight for Big Apple pedestrians – has now apparently been noticed and excoriated even by the federal government.
As originally reported by Streetsblog NYC, the U.S. Department of Justice warned the police department in a letter last month that parking illegally violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The city’s pedestrian grid is not “readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities” due to the police department’s frequent blockage of sidewalks and crosswalks near precincts, as well as the amount of time spent obstructing public access, the letter – dated March 29 – reads.
“In the event we determine that we cannot secure compliance voluntarily to correct the deficiencies identified in this letter, the Attorney General may initiate a lawsuit pursuant to the ADA,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District Damian Williams claimed, adding that the NYPD had two weeks to let the DOJ know that the agency was willing to work toward a resolution.
In order for the NYPD to comply with the ADA, the DOJ outlined several remedies that it encouraged the agency to put into place. These included creating a new parking policy for city vehicles, altering traffic enforcement officer training programs, setting up a complaint system whereby members of the public can report instances of illegal parking, as well as sending regular updates to the SDNY.
The letter notes that 91% of precincts throughout the five boroughs reported seeing police cars obstructing crosswalks and public walkways in a recent research.
