Residents from Inwood to Harlem have complained about the roar of motorcycles, dirt bikes, ATVs and more keeping them up at night, but say that their calls for help have gone ignored by the city and police. NBC New York’s Ray Villeda reports.
As night falls in Upper Manhattan, neighbors complain that the roaring sounds of dirt bikes, motorcycles and other vehicles keep them awake and cause safety concerns — but say their calls for help are going unanswered.
The loud rides happen nearly every day, say residents stretching from Inwood to Harlem, keeping them up at all hours of the night — and they have the videos to prove it. The neighbors have banded together online to form a Facebook group with 1,100 members, each person with an experience that shows the negative impact the noise has had on them.
"I've had to call out of work because I'm so tired from the night, that I can't focus next day at work," said Wendy Guardado. Fellow Inwood resident Jacqueline Angulo said between the "loud music, parties in the street, motorcycles," it's too much to handle.
Many have called the police or 311, but said those calls have gotten them nowhere. Earlier in the week, police said in a tweet that said in part "Riding dirt bikes and ATVs on NYC roadways and sidewalks is illegal," going on to warn of fines, arrests and vehicle seizures.
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"You'll hear motorcycles — 30, 40, 50 — doing wheelies and police just, they'll pass police cars and they'll do nothing," said Tom Shamy.
Residents said that it started last May, amid the worst of the pandemic, and has not stopped. Videos show groups of bikes at intersections in the middle of the night, taking off and pulling wheelies.
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One such scene happened as NBC New York was talking with residents, and a rider told News 4 what he thought about the complaints.
"It's not harming no body, we're not trying to jeopardize no body, or stopping pedestrians going by," the biker said. "I ain't doing nothing wrong, sorry if it's a little noisy but that's New York."
