§ 381 — Motorcycle equipment

New York § 381

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law VAT: Vehicle & Traffic
• Title 3: Safety Responsibility; Financial Security; Equipment; Inspection; Size and Weight; and Other Provisions
• Art. 9: Equipment of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles

Text

§ 381. Motorcycle equipment. 1. (a) Every motorcycle, driven upon the\npublic highways of this state, shall be provided with adequate brakes in\ngood working order and sufficient to control such motorcycle at all\ntimes, when the same is in use, a suitable and adequate bell, horn or\nother device for signaling, one red to amber stop lamp and shall,\nwhenever such motorcycle is being operated upon the public highways of\nthe state, display one lighted lamp in front and one on the rear, or,\nwhen such motorcycle is operated with a passenger or other truck\nattached to the side or front two such lamps on the front and one on the\nrear; and in all cases the lamps on a motorcycle shall include a red\nlight visible from the rear. The rays of such rear lamp shall shine upon\nthe number plate carried on the rear of such motorcycle in such manner\nas to render the numerals thereon visible for at least fifty feet in the\ndirection from which the motorcycle is proceeding. The light of the\nfront lamp or lamps shall be visible at least two hundred feet in the\ndirection in which the motorcycle is proceeding. Every such motorcycle\nshall have a suitable muffler or device to prevent unnecessary noise\nfrom exhaust gases, and the use of so-called "cut-outs" is prohibited.\n (b) Driving a motorcycle without the display of one lighted lamp in\nfront and one on the rear, during a period other than from one-half hour\nafter sunset to one-half hour before sunrise, shall not be deemed to\nconstitute negligence or contributory negligence in any action or\nproceeding arising out of the operation of such motorcycle.\n (c) The provisions of this subdivision relating to the display of one\nlighted lamp in front and one on the rear during a period other than\nfrom one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise shall\nnot apply to a motorcycle, driven at a speed of less than twenty miles\nper hour, owned by a municipality and used for the collection of parking\nfees or the enforcement of parking regulations.\n 1-a. Every motorcycle registered in this state and manufactured or\nassembled after January first, nineteen hundred seventy-one and\ndesignated as a nineteen hundred seventy-one or subsequent year model\nshall be equipped with brakes acting on the front as well as the rear\nwheel.\n 2. No head lamp shall be used upon any motorcycle operated upon the\npublic highways of the state, unless such lamp is approved by the\ncommissioner or is equipped with a lens or other device approved by the\ncommissioner. Every such head lamp, lens or other device shall be\napplied and adjusted in accordance with the requirements of the\ncertificate approving the use thereof. Every such head lamp shall be\nfirmly and substantially mounted on the motorcycle in such manner as to\nallow the lamp to be properly and readily adjusted. Each reflector which\nis used as a part of such head lamp shall have a polished silver or\nglass reflecting surface, or a reflecting surface which gives candle\npower intensity meeting the requirements of rules and regulations\nestablished by the commissioner, and shall be substantially free from\ndents, rust and other imperfections. The operator of every motorcycle\nshall permit any police officer or other person exercising police powers\nto inspect the equipment of such motorcycle and make such tests as may\nbe necessary to determine whether the provisions of this section are\nbeing complied with. The commissioner may make reasonable rules and\nregulations relative to lights on motorcycles and the approval of the\nsame which may be necessary to effectuate the foregoing provisions of\nthis section.\n 2-a. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate on the public\nhighways of the state any motorcycle manufactured or assembled after\nOctober first, nineteen hundred sixty-eight and designated as a nineteen\nhundred sixty-nine or subsequent year model unless such motorcycle is\nequipped with the lamps required by this section, which lamps shall be\nof a type, design and construction approved by the commissioner.\n 3. Except as hereinafter provided, only a white or yellow light shall\nbe displayed upon a motorcycle so as to be visible from a point directly\nin front of the vehicle. Any color light, except blue, may be displayed,\nso as to be visible from a point directly in front of the vehicle, on a\npolice vehicle or on a motorcycle operated by a sheriff or regular\ndeputy sheriff when engaged in the performance of duty as a police\nofficer. Any color light, including blue, may be displayed, so as to be\nvisible from a point directly in front of the vehicle, on a motorcycle\noperated by a chief or assistant chief of a fire department, a county or\ndeputy county fire coordinator, or a county or assistant county fire\nmarshal. A blue light may be displayed upon a motorcycle, so as to be\nvisible from a point directly in front of the vehicle, when operated by\nan active volunteer member of a fire department or company duly\nauthorized as hereinafter provided, and while such vehicle is in use for\nfire or other emergency service. No volunteer firefighter shall be\npermitted to display a blue light upon a motorcycle as hereinbefore\nprovided except while actually enroute to the scene of a fire or other\nemergency requiring his or her services and unless he or she shall be an\nactive volunteer member of a fire department or company and shall have\nbeen authorized in writing to so display a blue light by the chief of\nthe fire department or company of which he or she is a member, which\nauthorization shall be subject to revocation at any time by the chief\nwho issued the same, or his or her successor in office.\n 4. Every motorcycle shall have at least one adequate red reflector\nsecurely attached to the rear. Such reflector may be a part of the rear\nlamp. No reflector shall be deemed adequate within the meaning of this\nsubdivision unless it is of a size and type approved by the\ncommissioner, and unless it is so designed, located and maintained as to\nbe visible for at least two hundred feet when opposed by a motor vehicle\ndisplaying lawful undimmed headlights at night on an unlighted highway.\nThe provisions of this subdivision with respect to reflectors shall be\napplicable, both day and night, whenever the motorcycle is on a public\nhighway.\n 5. No person shall operate on a public highway a motorcycle on which\nthe handle bars or grips are more than the height of the operator's\nshoulders.\n 6. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or ride upon a\nmotorcycle unless he wears a protective helmet of a type which meets the\nrequirements set forth in section 571.218 of the federal motor vehicle\nsafety standards as may from time to time be amended. The commissioner\nis hereby authorized and directed to adopt regulations for helmets which\nare consistent with the requirements as specified in section 571.218 of\nthe federal motor vehicle safety standards as may from time to time be\namended. The police authorities of a city, town or village may issue a\npermit exempting members of organizations sponsoring or conducting\nparades or other public exhibitions from the provisions of this\nsubdivision while such members are participating in such parades or\nother public exhibitions.\n 7. It shall be unlawful, on and after January first, nineteen hundred\nsixty-seven, for any person to operate a motorcycle unless he wears\ngoggles or a face shield of a type approved by the commissioner. The\ncommissioner is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt and amend\nregulations covering types of goggles and face shields and the\nspecifications therefor and to establish and maintain a list of approved\ngoggles and face shields which meet the specifications as established\nhereunder.\n 8. It shall be unlawful to operate on any public highway in this state\nany motorcycle registered in this state which is equipped with a wind\nscreen, unless such wind screen meets the specifications established\ntherefor by the commissioner. The commissioner is hereby authorized to\nadopt and amend regulations covering types of wind screens and\nspecifications therefor.\n 9. It shall be unlawful to sell, offer for sale or distribute any\ngoggles or face shields for use by the operators of motorcycles unless\nthey are of a type and specification approved by the commissioner and\nappear on the list of approved devices maintained by the commissioner.\n 9-a. It shall be unlawful to sell, offer for sale or distribute any\nprotective helmets for use by the operators or passengers of motorcycles\nunless they are consistent with the regulations of the commissioner as\nprovided in subdivision six of this section and within the requirements\nspecified in section 571.218 of the federal motor vehicle safety\nstandards as may from time to time be amended.\n 10. It shall be unlawful after July first, nineteen hundred\nsixty-seven to operate on any public highway in this state any\nmotorcycle registered in this state, unless such motorcycle is equipped\nwith a rear view mirror which shall be adjusted so that the operator of\nsuch motorcycle shall have a clear view of the road and condition of\ntraffic behind such motorcycle.\n 11. No person shall operate a motorcycle on any highway which is: (1)\nnot equipped with a muffler to prevent excessive or unusual noise; (2)\nequipped with a muffler from which the baffle plates, screens or other\noriginal internal parts have been removed or altered; (3) equipped with\nan exhaust device without internal baffles, known as "straight pipes";\nor (4) equipped with an exhaust system that has been modified in a\nmanner that will amplify or increase the noise emitted by the motor of\nsuch vehicle above that emitted by the exhaust system originally\ninstalled on the vehicle.\n 12. No person shall operate a motorcycle on any highway which is\nequipped with an exhaust device that is intentionally designed to allow\nfor the internal baffling to be fully or partially removed or\ninterchangeable. This subdivision shall not apply to a motorcycle\nmanufactured or assembled prior to nineteen hundred seventy-nine or a\nmotorcycle registered as a limited use vehicle or an all terrain vehicle\npursuant to article forty-eight-A or forty-eight-B of this chapter.\n 13. A violation of any of the provisions of this section except\nsubdivisions eleven and twelve shall be punishable by a fine not\nexceeding one hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not exceeding\nthirty days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. A violation of\nsubdivision eleven or twelve of this section shall be punishable by a\nfine not exceeding five hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not\nexceeding thirty days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.\n