In a state with a population of close to 20 million people, traffic violations are bound to happen. In fact, New York traffic violations are so common that many have broken the law at one point or the other. And when you violate the traffic rules you, get a traffic ticket for your troubles, even if you have an EZ Pass NY tag.
The penalties for breaking NYC traffic rules are numerous, but some of the common ones are fines, license suspensions (for repeated offenders), increased insurance premiums and raised license points.
How to avoid traffic violations in New York?
Bearing this in mind, how do you avoid traffic violations? Well, the best answer to this question is to avoid traffic violations altogether. This, however, is not an easy thing to do, especially if you do not even know what the rules are in the first place. In New York State, the following can get you in hot soup with the authorities.
- Speeding
- If your parking meter is overdue
- Failure to use the turn signal
- Parking your vehicle without authorization in a handicap zone
- Over-aggressive driving and obscene gestures
- Stopping your vehicle improperly
- Yielding to the yellow light at the wrong time
- Aggressively overtaking another vehicle
Now that you know what the common violations are, let’s show you how to avoid them while driving. Do bear in mind that you should endeavor to pay your tolls when you use a toll plaza. If you don’t like wasting too much time, then using an EZ Pass only lane is your best bet.
#1 Don’t break the rules: First things first, don’t break the rules. Before taking a drive, understand what the rules are and adhere to them. Drivers who don’t break the rules don’t get tickets for violations.
#2 Adopt Defensive driving: Driving defensively simply means that you expect other drivers to make mistakes or not to abide by the rules. Driving defensively will save you from accident situations and keep you under the radar of police. Defensive driving is the opposite of aggressive driving.
#3 Concentrate: When driving, make sure you focus. Don’t eat, answer a call or apply makeup on the wheels. If you do any of these, you are more likely to make a wrong turn or flout the traffic signs.
#4 Look out for Speed traps: In New York, speed traps can be found everywhere especially at the foot of a hill. When approaching a potential speed trap make sure you reduce your speed to avoid a rear collision with another oncoming vehicle.
#5 Watch out for Red Light Cameras: Make sure you watch out for red light cameras as there are currently about 2000 of them installed at accident-prone areas in the city.
#6 Get an EZ Pass NY tag: If you must use an EZ Pass only lane, make sure you get an EZ Pass account to avoid issues with the DMV.
Also Read: NY Road Conditions – 5 Things you must know
New York Traffic Rules and Regulations to take note of
When driving in and around New York State, there are quite a lot of things to bear in mind to be on the safe side of the law. The traffic laws of the state are one of the most highly enforced laws in the US. So if you violate any of them, escaping punishment is almost impossible. Being a highly populated state, you will have to share the road with thousands of other drivers on a daily basis, so you need to keep yourself and others safe as well. Here are some traffic rules to be familiar with when driving in New York.
- Know the right of way
You need to know the right of way. If you find yourself at an intersection with other cars in front of you, do not attempt to overtake them. Rather, let them go first. If you reach an intersection and there is a car opposite your lane coming towards your directions, the driver that is turning left has to yield to the driver going straight or turning right. Drivers are also expected to yield the right of way to pedestrians using marked and unmarked crosswalks.
- Know the necessary distance cars must keep
Learn to observe the “3 seconds rule,” which entails that you count three before you reach a point the vehicle in front of you has passed. During bad weather, New York drivers are expected to leave a lot more space between their cars and the car in front for extra safety.
- Keep a close eye on turn signals
The traffic rules also state that you must have your signals on at least 100 ft before your next turn. Providing signals early enough before you stop or slow down is also very important for all drivers, as this helps in reducing the possibility of crashes. Also, remember that lanes go according to predefined speed limits. For clarity, the furthest left lane is known as the “fast lane,” and the furthest lane on the right is known as “slow lane.” So, therefore, if you see several cars passing through on your right, you are expected to move over to the right to enable them to go through the left.
Lastly, there are intersections with traffic lights that allow drivers to turn right even when the light is red. Before you make a turn, make sure you stop first, check to see if the intersection is free, then make your right turn as soon as you can do so safely. However, do not turn right if the traffic sign forbids it. Otherwise, you will be charged with a traffic violation.
Although there are so many traffic rules in New York, the ones we highlighted in this article are the common ones. Make sure you adopt these tips to stay out of trouble.