“Blocking the box is more than a driver etiquette issue. It strangles public transit, delays emergency vehicles, worsens air quality, and reduces pedestrian safety.”
NYC Department of Transportation officials at a press conference in 2018. The city’s enforcement efforts have waned since then, the author argues. (New York City Department of Transportation/Flickr)
Every New Yorker has seen it: the green light turns, but your crosswalk is still clogged with frustrated drivers who charged into the intersection with nowhere to go. Maybe you were the pedestrian stuck weaving between fenders at 181st and Broadway, or the bus rider whose ride came to a complete standstill outside Port Authority as one car blocked the box for three light cycles.
Pedestrians are stranded, buses are delayed, and gridlock ripples across blocks. It’s not just a daily nuisance—it’s a design failure, an enforcement gap, and a public safety hazard. The solution? Enforce the law that already exists: Don’t Block the Box. And do it with cameras.
Under city and state traffic laws, it is already illegal to enter an intersection unless there is room to fully exit it. But despite clear legal authority and widespread violations, enforcement is sporadic at best.
A 2018 initiative under Mayor Bill de Blasio briefly prioritized intersections, but the momentum fizzled due to shifting political priorities, lack of sustained funding, and inconsistent follow-through by enforcement agencies. Today, box-blocking persists with near impunity.
The case for camera enforcement
Let’s start with the numbers. When New York City expanded speed camera enforcement, speeding dropped by 72 percent at camera-equipped locations. Red light cameras have reduced serious crashes by 73 percent at intersections where they were installed. Bus lane enforcement cameras significantly decreased unauthorized vehicle use. Automated enforcement changes behavior—and it does so consistently, fairly, and without escalating interactions.
Blocking the box is more than a driver etiquette issue. It strangles public transit, delays emergency vehicles, worsens air quality, and reduces pedestrian safety. One car stuck in the middle of an intersection can throw off signal cycles for multiple directions. Multiply that across dozens of high-traffic junctions, and you have a city that cannot move.
Camera enforcement would change that. By installing cameras at key intersections and fining drivers who obstruct the box, the city could create immediate deterrence. The technology exists. The precedent is there. So why haven’t we done it?
The legal catch: Albany holds the key
New York City cannot deploy new camera enforcement programs without explicit state authorization. Red light, speed, and bus lane cameras all required bills passed in Albany. The same would be true for “box blocking” cameras. And this is where momentum dies.
Opponents in the legislature often frame traffic cameras as revenue grabs, surveillance overreach, or unfair to low-income drivers. But this ignores the data. Enforcement cameras are among the most effective, least biased, and most scalable tools in our transit toolkit. They do not discriminate. They do not escalate. They simply record violations and issue fines.
To ensure equity, legislation can include safeguards: tiered fines for repeat offenders, income-based fine reductions, or options for community service. The camera footage can also help pinpoint poorly designed intersections and guide future infrastructure fixes.
Follow the money: where would the revenue go?
This is a crucial question. Currently, most camera revenue disappears into the city’s general fund. But it doesn’t have to. London’s congestion charge feeds directly into public transportation improvements. New York City’s congestion pricing funding is earmarked for the MTA. The same could be true for box-blocking fines.
If state law allowed it, the city could reinvest that revenue into:
Transit signal priority upgrades for buses
Sidewalk extensions and intersection redesigns
Reduced fares for low-income riders
Maintenance for subway stations and elevators
Expansion of protected bike lanes
A targeted funding mechanism could shift the narrative: from punitive to constructive, from fines to fixes.
A worker installs a speed zone camera outside a public school in Manhattan in 2018. (Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography)
High-collision intersections and why they matter
According to a study by Aleksey Bilogur, a former employee of the Mayor’s Office of Data and Analytics, and data compiled by law firms specializing in traffic accidents, the following intersections consistently rank high in crash frequency, often exacerbated by blocked intersections and gridlock:
Brooklyn
Tillary Street & Flatbush Avenue: ~180 crashes annually
Atlantic Avenue & Pennsylvania Avenue: ~130 crashes annually
Linden Boulevard & Pennsylvania Avenue: ~135 crashes annually
Manhattan
2nd Avenue & East 59th Street: ~150 crashes annually
42nd Street & 8th Avenue: ~140 crashes annually
57th Street & 3rd Avenue: ~110 crashes annually
Queens
Queens Boulevard & Long Island Expressway: ~110 crashes annually
Other Problematic Locations
The Bowery & Kenmare Street (Manhattan)
Major Deegan Expressway & West Fordham Road (The Bronx)
Clove Road & Narrows Road North (Staten Island)
These intersections reflect areas where blocking the box contributes to traffic snarls and increased crash risk. The NYC Department of Transportation and NYPD previously identified 50 such intersections for targeted enforcement. While the most comprehensive list dates back to 2018, the continued problems at these locations underscore the need for renewed and consistent action.
Anticipating the opposition
“It’s just a cash grab.” Only if we let it be. Earmark the funds. Make the revenue stream transparent and reinvest it in traffic calming, not bureaucracy.
“It punishes poor drivers.” So does sitting in traffic for an extra 40 minutes. Equity solutions exist: tiered penalties, waivers, payment plans, and diversion programs.
“It’s Big Brother.” No more than red light cameras, bus lane enforcement, or license plate readers. These tools are already in use—and they work.
A smarter, saner City
New York is a city that prides itself on movement. But movement requires flow, and flow requires rules that are enforced. If we want fewer blocked intersections, we need better tools to hold drivers accountable. We need cameras.
To do this, we need Albany to act. We need legislation that empowers New York City to deploy intersection cameras with purpose and equity. And we need a city willing to reinvest in the infrastructure that lets us all move better.
It’s time to get out of the box—and start enforcing it. If we want safer streets, cleaner air, and faster commutes, the first step is simple: pass the law, install the cameras, and show that in New York City, accountability still matters. The time to act is now.
Katherine Minaya, M.D., is a pediatrician and health equity writer based in New York City, where she advocates for safer streets, sustainable infrastructure, and policies that serve historically underserved communities.
The post Opinion: Why NYC Should Enforce ‘Don’t Block the Box’—With Cameras appeared first on City Limits.
