NY State Senator Espaillat Calls for Tougher Enforcement of Motorcyclists

New York Senator Adriano Espaillat thinks motorcyclists are taking over Manhattan's Upper West Side. 

He claims they drive on the sidewalks and on the wrong side of the road, and they don't follow traffic laws. On Sunday, a driver was pulled from his SUV and beaten by a group of motorcyclists after he had rear-ended one of them on the West Side Highway.

“I am concerned that this neighborhood has become the Wild West for motorcycle drivers,” said Espaillat.

Eddie Murphy is the past-president and now the Sergeant at Arms for the Empire City Motor Club. He believes Sunday’s attackers acted in chaos.

“You don’t surround him like Indians surrounding a stage coach. You’re going to get hurt,” said Murphy.

He says the riders in his club actually follow strict rules to keep everyone on the road safe.

“We always have a road captain up front, a leader. Then you're staggered, you’re in one lane of traffic. And you have a safety, who rides behind. Now, when the leader wants to move over to another lane, he'll signal to the safety who will clear that lane. Then we'll all move over into the cleared lane,” he explained.

There currently aren't any New York City laws that prohibit motorcyclists from riding in large groups.