§ 1234. Riding on roadways, shoulders, bicycle or in-line skate lanes\nand bicycle or in-line skate paths. (a) Upon all roadways, any bicycle\nor in-line skate shall be driven either on a usable bicycle or in-line\nskate lane or, if a usable bicycle or in-line skate lane has not been\nprovided, near the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway or upon a\nusable right-hand shoulder in such a manner as to prevent undue\ninterference with the flow of traffic except when preparing for a left\nturn or when reasonably necessary to avoid conditions that would make it\nunsafe to continue along near the right-hand curb or edge. Conditions to\nbe taken into consideration include, but are not limited to, fixed or\nmoving objects, vehicles, bicycles, in-line skates, pedestrians,\nanimals, surface hazards or traffic lanes too narrow for a bicycle or\nperson on in-line skates and a vehicle to travel safely side-by-side\nwithin the lane.\n (b) Persons riding bicycles or skating or gliding on in-line skates\nupon a roadway shall not ride more than two abreast. Persons riding\nbicycles or skating or gliding on in-line skates upon a shoulder,\nbicycle or in-line skate lane, or bicycle or in-line skates path,\nintended for the use of bicycles or in-line skates may ride two or more\nabreast if sufficient space is available, except that when passing a\nvehicle, bicycle or person on in-line skates, or pedestrian, standing or\nproceeding along such shoulder, lane or path, persons riding bicycles or\nskating or gliding on in-line skates shall ride, skate, or glide single\nfile. Persons riding bicycles or skating or gliding on in-line skates\nupon a roadway shall ride, skate, or glide single file when being\novertaken by a vehicle.\n (c) Any person operating a bicycle or skating or gliding on in-line\nskates who is entering the roadway from a private road, driveway, alley\nor over a curb shall come to a full stop before entering the roadway.\n
N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1234
Riding on roadways, shoulders, bicycle or in-line skate lanes and bicycle or in-line skate paths
Applied in 6 court decisions — leading case Durrans v. Harrison & Burrowes Bridge Constructors, Inc. (2015)
Most recently applied in Hart v. Chiang (December 2023)
2014-09-22
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Official source: NYS Open Legislation (New York State Senate). Reproduced from public-domain New York statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.