Jaywalking may soon by legal in New York City. Some say they were surprised to hear it is illegal.
By Alecia Reid
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NEW YORK (WCBS, WLNY) — When it comes to crossing the street, New York City pedestrians may soon be able to legally do something they’re been doing for years — jaywalking.
On the bustling streets of the Big Apple, it is a normal occurrence.
“I never knew it was illegal. I do it all the time,” one man in Harlem said.
“The city is very, very congested, so we sometimes jaywalk. It’s almost normalized,” another said.
Soon, that status may change. The City Council passed legislation recently that will make jaywalking legal.
It’s up to Mayor Eric Adams to give the final OK. CBS News New York reached out to see if it will become a reality. A spokesperson did not say if the mayor plans to sign the bill, but said pedestrians are encouraged to use the crosswalk.
The Legal Aid Society is applauding the City Council’s decision and hopes the mayor puts pen to paper, saying in a statement, “Jaywalking enforcement has long served as a pretext for over-policing that has disproportionately impacted Black and Latinx communities, ensnaring New Yorkers of color in the criminal legal system.”
It added jaywalking enforcement is less about enforcing traffic and public safety and more about biased policing.
Transportation Alternatives, an organization dedicated to pedestrian and street safety, also supports legalizing jaywalking, calling it an outdated policy that doesn’t make anyone safer.
But in a fast-paced city, some pedestrians say one still has to pay close attention when jaywalking.
“That’s like a double-edged knife,” Harlem’s Charlie Pasaral said.
“It’s just faster when you need to get to where you gotta go, if you need to catch another bus or something like that. At the same time, it’s kind of dangerous. If you’re not watching where you’re going, you could get hit,” added Asia Adams of Harlem.
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