Thursday’s Headlines: Criminal Mischief Edition

The huge story yesterday was just how many speeding and parking tickets drivers aren’t paying.

According to the Independent Budget Office, there are currently more than $1 billion in uncollected parking and red light camera-generated fines — a staggering number that builds off of Streetsblog’s reporting earlier this year that tens of thousands of license plates can’t even be read by city speed and red-light cameras.

All the major outlets covered the outrage, including the NY Post, The City, and amNY, but most only focused on the raw numbers, rather than the outrage that the same people who are filling our lungs with pollution, congestion our roadways, making cycling and walking unpleasant, intimidating our kids, killing our seniors and ruining our infrastructure are also not paying when they break the law.

At least Hell Gate played it right: “Bad Drivers Owe NYC $1 Billion,” the reporter-owned website blared. “That’s around double the Parks Department’s annual budget.”

In other news from a four-glasses-of-wine kinda day:

• Before we let you forget, Jesse Coburn’s full three-part investigation into the temp tag black market is now online in one handy, gorgeously designed online space. Click here to read it again and again.
• The City did a great job covering the infighting in the deliverista world.
• How about this $5.5-billion giveaway to the police? (NYDN, NY Post)
• Gov. Hochul walked back her effort to undermine the environment. (NY Times)
• amNY put four reporters and two editors on its long takeout on outdoor dining, but didn’t add that much to the debate: a bill to make the Open Restaurant program permanent is simply stalled.
• Are you enjoying all the cops in the subway? Well, they’re coming to parks, too. (Gothamist)
• We’re glad the Times did the Ulysses Grant arrest story because no one should speed recklessly.