The New York City Department of Transportation announced on Thursday that it is prohibiting unsanctioned cyclists from entering the New York City Marathon course at any point on November 2.
The notice was widely circulated in an email to run club leaders and specifically outlined that street closures in the hours before the race are meant for emergency vehicles, crews setting up for the event and medical tents.
Since at least the early 1990s, cyclists have used large stretches of the 26.2 mile course to organize rides the early morning hours before sunrise to trek empty streets without contending with cars and trucks on the same roads.
In the city, there are rare opportunities for street takeovers outside of the Five Boro Bike Tour in May and Summer Streets in August — both which are sanctioned. The Five Boro Bike Tour stretches back to 1977 and a championed by then-mayor Ed Koch beginning in 1978 with backing from the city. Summer Streets, also sponsored by the city, kicked off in 2008, with car-free zones in Manhattan on three Saturday morning in August that was also popular with runners.
Despite big turnouts, neither event drew in hype of pulling in cyclists from all parts of city, a range of ages and backgrounds eager for the unique opportunity to cruise the route.
Eventually, the gathering grew over the years with some bike club internally organizing groups to take part, while single riders would show up. In recent years, hundreds of cyclists showing up on the eve of the marathon became routine with skateboarders and rollerbladers also participating. Riders would start in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, near the second mile of the course at the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.
But that also meant some cyclists pushed the boundaries of the etiquette of the event, with some people riding fast or simply not obeying unwritten rules of these kinds of unsanctioned gatherings.
Last year New York Road Runners, organizers of the marathon, issued a warning to cyclists that was nearly identical to the message issued by city transportation officials on Thursday.
“In coordination with various City Agencies, no unsanctioned bicycles will be allowed on the marathon course once it is closed to traffic that morning,” last year’s notice read. “This decision was made to ensure everyone’s safety. Anyone attempting to ride anywhere on the course ahead of the Marathon — starting in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn — will be diverted and removed by the authorities.”
For this year’s race, and it’s setup, the move to again attempt to deter cyclists will likely be enforced if any riders are intercepted. However, what is unclear is if riders will face any penalties outside of being guided off of the street.
