If you have ever driven in New York City and wondered whether you can make a right turn at a red light, the short answer is no, unless a sign explicitly says you can. New York City is one of the few places in the entire United States where turning right on red is prohibited by default across all five boroughs. But cross the city border into Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County, or just about anywhere else in New York State, and the rules flip entirely. This article breaks down exactly where you can and cannot turn right on red in New York, the history behind the law, why New York City is different, and how much it will cost you if you get it wrong.
The Basic Rule: New York City vs. Everywhere Else in New York State
New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1111(d) governs right turns on red lights. The law creates two different sets of rules depending on where you are driving:
In New York City (all five boroughs, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island): You may not turn right on a red light unless a sign is posted at the intersection specifically permitting it. This is the reverse of the rule everywhere else. The default is prohibition.
Everywhere else in New York State (including Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County, and all other cities, towns, and villages with populations under one million): You may turn right on a red light after coming to a complete stop and yielding the right-of-way to pedestrians and other traffic lawfully in the intersection, unless a sign prohibits the turn.
So if you are driving in Garden City, Hempstead, Huntington, Smithtown, Riverhead, Yonkers, White Plains, Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, or Syracuse, right on red is legal by default. The moment you cross into New York City limits, it becomes illegal by default.
The Population One Million Rule
The legal mechanism that creates this split is a single sentence in New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1111(d)(2), which reads: “Except in a city having a population of one million or more, unless a sign is in place prohibiting such turn, traffic facing a steady circular red signal may cautiously enter the intersection to make a right turn after stopping.”
In other words, the state law permitting right turns on red explicitly exempts any city with a population of one million or more. New York City is the only city in New York State, and one of the few in the entire country, that meets that threshold. The result is a blanket prohibition on right turns at red lights across all five boroughs, unless a sign says otherwise.
Importantly, the law also gives New York City the option to opt in. Section 1111(d)(2) includes a provision stating that any city with a population of one million or more “is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt a local law” to allow right turns on red. If the city adopted such a local law, the prohibition would no longer apply. New York City has never done so. The prohibition has remained in place since the state first legalized right on red in 1977.
Staten Island: The One Exception Within New York City
While right on red is prohibited throughout New York City, there are a small number of intersections where signs explicitly permit it. These exceptions are almost entirely concentrated in Staten Island, which is more suburban in character than the other four boroughs. At these intersections, you will see a sign reading “Right Turn on Red Permitted After Stop” or similar language. Even at these locations, you must come to a complete stop and yield to pedestrians and oncoming traffic before making the turn.
In Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx, you will essentially never see a sign permitting right on red. If you are driving in any of these boroughs, assume you must wait for a green light.
Left Turns on Red: The Same Rule Applies
New York State law also permits left turns on red in certain circumstances, but only when turning from a one-way street onto another one-way street. As with right turns on red, this is prohibited in New York City unless a sign permits it, and permitted everywhere else in the state unless a sign prohibits it. The same population threshold of one million applies.
School Buses: A Statewide Prohibition
Regardless of where you are in New York State, school buses are prohibited from turning on any red light, right or left, while transporting pupils. This rule applies in New York City, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County, and everywhere else in the state. There are no exceptions and no signs that override this prohibition.
The History of Right-on-Red Laws in the United States
To understand why New York City prohibits right on red, it helps to understand how right-on-red laws came to exist in the first place. The concept is relatively modern. California was among the earliest states to permit right turns on red, beginning decades before the rule became common nationwide. Over the 1950s and 1960s, other western states followed suit. But for most of the country, right on red was not legal until the 1970s.
The catalyst was the 1973 oil crisis. When oil prices spiked and fuel shortages gripped the nation, policymakers looked for ways to reduce fuel consumption. One idea was that allowing drivers to turn right on red rather than idling at empty intersections would save gasoline. In 1975, Congress passed the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which included a provision requiring states to permit right turns on red lights as a condition of receiving federal assistance for energy conservation programs. The relevant federal statute, now codified at 42 U.S.C. Section 6322(c), states that a state energy conservation plan must include “a traffic law or regulation which, to the maximum extent practicable consistent with safety, permits the operator of a motor vehicle to turn such vehicle right at a red stop light after stopping.”
Under this federal pressure, eastern states began amending their traffic laws in the late 1970s. New York State legalized right on red in 1977, carving out the exception for cities with populations over one million. Massachusetts was the last state to adopt right on red, with the law taking effect on January 1, 1980. By 1980, all 50 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico permitted right turns on red, except where prohibited by a sign, making New York City’s prohibition a notable outlier.
Massachusetts resisted the mandate aggressively. Approximately 90 percent of traffic signals in Massachusetts were outfitted with “No Turn on Red” signs in protest of the federal requirement. New York City took a different approach: rather than posting “No Turn on Red” signs at thousands of intersections, the state law simply made the prohibition the default for the city.
Why New York City Prohibits Right on Red
The reasons New York City has maintained its prohibition for nearly 50 years come down to several factors:
Pedestrian density: New York City has the highest pedestrian volume of any city in the United States. Intersections in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens regularly see hundreds of pedestrians crossing during every signal cycle. Allowing vehicles to creep into crosswalks on red lights would create constant conflicts with foot traffic.
Traffic complexity: New York City’s street grid includes complex intersections, bus lanes, bike lanes, turn lanes, and pedestrian islands. Adding right-on-red movements to already congested intersections would increase the potential for collisions.
Safety data: Multiple studies have shown that right-on-red laws increase accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists. A 1981 study by the U.S. Department of Transportation found that after right-on-red was adopted, pedestrian accidents increased by 43 to 107 percent and bicyclist accidents by 72 to 123 percent at studied locations. A 1984 study found that right-turning crashes overall increased by about 23 percent, pedestrian crashes by 60 percent, and bicyclist crashes by 100 percent. A 1993 study concluded that right on red increased pedestrian crashes by 44 percent and cyclist crashes by 59 percent.
However, the safety argument is not entirely one-sided. A 2002 study published in the ITE Journal suggested that prohibiting right on red would force all right-turning vehicles to turn on green, which could actually increase the number of right-turn collisions. And a 2009 New York City Department of Transportation study examined specific intersections where right on red had been allowed and concluded that the change had not affected accident rates.
Despite these counterarguments, New York City has consistently chosen to keep its default prohibition, citing the sheer volume of pedestrians and the complexity of its street network.
Fines and Penalties for Illegal Right-on-Red Turns
The amounts and procedures described below are general information, not legal advice. Courts and enforcement programs can change their schedules and procedures.
The consequences of an illegal right turn on red depend on whether the violation was recorded by a camera or issued by a police officer, as well as the location where it occurred.
Red Light Camera Tickets
Red light camera violations are civil infractions, not criminal traffic violations. They carry a flat fine of $50 with no license points and no impact on insurance premiums. The registered owner of the vehicle is responsible for the fine, regardless of who was driving.
New York City: The red light camera fine is $50. The registered owner is responsible, even if someone else was driving. Camera violations do not add license points.
Nassau County: Nassau County continues to operate a red light camera program. New York’s authorizing statute caps the civil penalty at $50 for each violation and permits an additional late-payment penalty of no more than $25.
Suffolk County: Suffolk County’s red light camera program expired on December 1, 2024. The county does not issue camera notices for violations occurring on or after that date, although earlier notices remain subject to processing.
Westchester County and other areas: Camera enforcement exists only where state and local law specifically authorize a program. Drivers should check the current rules for the municipality involved rather than assuming that every county operates cameras.
Police-Issued Tickets (Officer Pulls You Over)
If a police officer pulls you over for making an illegal right turn on red, the penalties are significantly steeper than a camera ticket. The violation falls under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1111(d)(2), and the consequences include:
Fine: Up to $150 for a first offense. A second offense within 18 months can cost up to $300, and a third offense up to $450. The exact fine amount is set by the court or traffic violations bureau handling the case.
Mandatory surcharge: A state-mandated surcharge may be added to a police-issued traffic conviction. The amount depends on the court and the applicable offense.
License points: A traffic-signal violation carries 3 points. Beginning February 16, 2026, New York DMV uses a 24-month lookback period when calculating points for possible suspension.
Insurance impact: A conviction can lead to increased auto insurance premiums that may last for three years or more.
Driver Responsibility Assessment: If you accumulate 6 points within an 18-month period, New York DMV charges $100 per year for three years, for a total of $300. Each point above six adds $25 per year for three years, or $75 per additional point. This assessment is separate from court fines and surcharges.
If you accumulate 11 points within 24 months, your driver’s license may be suspended.
Local fine schedules: Courts and traffic violations agencies may publish schedules that differ from the statutory maximums because of surcharges or local procedures. Check the agency listed on the ticket for the current amount.
Recent National Trends: Cities Moving Toward Banning Right on Red
While New York City has prohibited right on red for decades, other cities across the country have recently begun moving in the same direction, driven by rising pedestrian fatalities. According to the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, pedestrian deaths in the United States reached a 40-year high in 2022.
Atlanta, Georgia: The Atlanta City Council approved an ordinance prohibiting right turns on red in the Downtown, Midtown, and Castleberry Hill neighborhoods.
San Francisco, California: San Francisco expanded no-turn-on-red restrictions at selected intersections. An evaluation of the Tenderloin program reported a sharp decline in close calls and vehicles blocking crosswalks.
Seattle, Washington: Seattle adopted a broad policy favoring no-turn-on-red restrictions at signalized intersections, with engineering review used to determine where exceptions are appropriate.
Other cities: Municipalities around the country continue to consider or expand restrictions in areas with heavy pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
These developments suggest that the national trend that began in the 1970s, adopting right on red to save fuel, may be reversing in dense urban areas where pedestrian safety is the overriding concern. New York City, which never adopted right on red in the first place, now appears to have been ahead of the curve.
Quick Reference: Where Can You Turn Right on Red in New York?
New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island): NO, prohibited unless a sign permits it. Signs exist only at a small number of intersections, almost entirely in Staten Island.
Nassau County: YES, permitted after a complete stop and yielding, unless a sign prohibits it.
Suffolk County: YES, permitted after a complete stop and yielding, unless a sign prohibits it.
Westchester County: YES, permitted after a complete stop and yielding, unless a sign prohibits it.
Rest of New York State (Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, Syracuse, etc.): YES, permitted after a complete stop and yielding, unless a sign prohibits it.
School buses statewide: NO, prohibited everywhere in New York State, regardless of location.
Summary
New York’s right-on-red law is unusual because it creates two different defaults within the same state. Outside New York City, the rule is the same as the rest of the country: stop, yield, and turn if it is safe. Inside New York City, you must wait for green, period. The law has been this way since 1977, when New York State legalized right on red under federal pressure to conserve fuel but carved out an exception for its largest city. Nearly 50 years later, with pedestrian safety concerns growing nationwide and more cities following New York City’s lead, that exception is looking less like an anomaly and more like a model.
If you are driving in New York City and the light is red, do not turn right. Wait for green. It is the law, and the penalties for getting it wrong, whether from a camera or a police officer, are steep enough to make patience the smarter choice.
Sources
New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1111; New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1800; New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1111-B; NYC311: Right Turn on Red in Staten Island; NYC311: Red Light Cameras; New York DMV Driver Point System; New York DMV Driver Responsibility Assessment; Suffolk County Red Light Camera Program; Nassau County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency; Atlanta City Council Right-on-Red Ordinance; and the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975.
