Car Drivers Are Ignoring Prospect Park Ban, Locals Say

PARK SLOPE, NY — The city might have permanently closed off Brooklyn's back yard to cars, but that hasn't stopped drivers from flouting the law and cutting through Prospect Park, residents said.

Since the January ban, residents said drivers frequently avoid barriers or enter through parking lots to travel through roads in the park, the Brooklyn Paper first reported.

"I think they’re just looking for a quick way out of traffic," Stanley Greenberg, a member of the Prospect Park Community Committee who brought up the issue, told Patch. "I think they all know what the rules are and they’re just avoiding the barriers."

Greenberg said he's seen cars driving through the East and West drives of that park almost daily since January. He said it's made the roads more treacherous since cyclists aren't looking out for cars.

"It's a little more dangerous to have one errant car because you don’t expect to see anything," Greenberg said.

The park permanently went car-free in January when the city banned private vehicles from driving along East Drive, which was open to them during the morning rush hour. Cars were barred from the West Drive in 2015.

The Parks Department said the city has placed metal and wood barriers, signs and orange barrels to stop cars from cutting in the park and only issued one summons for vehicles illegally driving inside since the ban started.

"In the coming weeks, we will be installing more permanent fixtures at the entrances to further deter unofficial vehicle access," said Mae Ferguson, spokeswoman for Parks, in a statement.

Since he brought up the issue at a meeting last week, Greenberg said he's seen an increase in NYPD presence at entrances of the park.

Image: AP Photo/Julie Jacobson