They were four-armed manually-operated semaphores with the words “STOP” and “GO” painted on their arms. The first traffic control devices at intersections in New York City were installed in 1915. However, this has not always been the case. Many of the traffic summonses issued today are for “running” the red lights, but no driver today would expect a summons for driving past a green light. (Today there are over 2 million vehicles of all types registered in the City, in addition to the uncounted vehicles that commute from the suburbs every day). While it is not known how exactly many summonses were issued at that time, the number of motor vehicles in New York City had already mushroomed by 1912 to 38000. Enforcing these regulations, however, was a little difficult at first as the state legislature did not give the Police Department the power to issue summonses for traffic infractions until 1910. The original “rules of the road” that were adopted included keeping to the right so that slower-moving vehicles could be passed on the left, and signaling one’s intentions by extending or raising the hand (or the whip) before slowing, stopping, or turning. In December 1908, Police Commissioner Bingham was given the responsibility of creating the first traffic regulations after his authority had been specifically extended to encompass this area. ![]() It soon became apparent that vehicular traffic regulations were absolutely necessary. And with the great numbers of motor cars and trucks jamming the streets, it was not unusual to see traffic disputes settle by drivers “duking it out”, and still further tying up traffic. Still, automobiles were becoming increasingly popular, and no longer just with the wealthy. Yet the great number of horses on the streets of that year was clearly evident by that fact that the NYPD’s Mounted Division alone had by that time reached its all-time high of 800 officers, with its primary unit being the “Traffic Squad”. The difficulty that the public experienced attempting to negotiate the maze of people, horses, and bicycles on streets that were often unpaved, muddy, or dusty found some relief when the subway system began operating in October of 1904. Traffic summonses did not then exist, so speeders caught by “Scorchers” were arrested on the spot and brought before the judge. When excessive speed was observed, he would telephone ahead to the next booth, and a uniformed officer would be dispatched on a bicycle to stop the offender. A Scorcher Squad officer stationed in a booth would record the speeds of passing vehicles. The Scorcher Squad soon found itself with the responsibility of enforcing the speed regulations not just for Bicycles, but for the newest toy of the wealthy: the automobile. To control the speed-demon “wheelmen” who exceeded the New York City speed limit of 8 miles per hour (approximately 13 kph), in December of 1895, Police Commissioner Theodore Roosevelt organized the police Department’s old Bicycle Squad, which quickly acquired the nickname of the “scorcher” Squad. The officers of the Broadway Squad were the largest and most imposing in the Department (the minimum height was six feet), and their primary duty was nothing other than to escort pedestrians safely across Broadway in Manhattan between Bowling Green and West 59th Street.Ī new wrinkle in traffic control was added by the bicycle craze of the 1890’s, when large numbers of cyclists took to the City’s streets. Getting across a busy street could be a real challenge, and the constant hazard to pedestrians led in the 1860’s to the formation of the first traffic-related unit in the NYPD, the famous Broadway Squad”. Carriages and wagons dashed about in every direction, and runway horses added to the chaos with alarming frequency. ![]() Until the end of the 19th Century, traffic in New York City was largely uncontrolled. Believe it or not, that’s true at least compared to what it used to be. ![]() ![]() There’s actually a whole history behind how traffic in our City has evolved into what it is today – a smooth, efficient, and expeditious way of getting from one place to another.
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