Hit by a Garbage Truck, Street Sweeper, or Snowplow in New York? When the Rules of the Road Apply

On the evening of Wednesday, October 28, 2026, a woman crossing Bay Parkway at Cropsey Avenue in Bath Beach, Brooklyn, was struck and killed by a New York City Department of Sanitation truck. According to CBS New York, the sanitation employee "made a right turn onto Bay Parkway" and "remained on the scene," and "[t]here were no immediate criminal charges filed." amNY reported on October 29 that the NYPD's Collision Investigation Squad was conducting "an ongoing inquiry." On November 4, police arrested the driver, who was charged with "failure to yield to a pedestrian and failure to exercise due care," according to amNY; a charge is an accusation, not proof of guilt. Our post on turning drivers and the Right of Way Law explains those rules.

We do not know what caused this crash, and nothing here is a comment on anyone involved. But it raises a question that can come up when a City truck is in a crash: does a vehicle doing the City's work have to follow the same rules of the road as everyone else? Generally, yes, but there is an exception that can matter a great deal.

City Vehicles Must Follow the Rules of the Road

New York's traffic rules "shall apply to drivers of all vehicles owned or operated by the United States, this state, or any county, city, town, district, or any other political subdivision of the state," subject to the exceptions the law sets out, including those for emergency vehicles (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1103(a)). Our post on crashes with ambulances, fire trucks, and police cars covers the emergency vehicle rules.

The Exception: Vehicles "Actually Engaged in Work on a Highway"

With a few exceptions, the rules of the road "shall not apply to persons, teams, motor vehicles, and other equipment while actually engaged in work on a highway" (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1103(b)). Those workers must still proceed "with due regard for the safety of all persons," and the exception does not protect anyone "from the consequences of their reckless disregard for the safety of others."

In Riley v County of Broome, 95 NY2d 455 (2000), a case about a county street sweeper and, in a companion case, a State snowplow, the Court of Appeals held that whether a vehicle qualifies "turns on the nature of the work being performed (construction, repair, maintenance or similar work)," not on the kind of vehicle. It also held that "[s]ection 1103(b) imposes the same recklessness standard on vehicles actually engaged in work on a highway" that applies to emergency vehicles. Reckless disregard is much harder to prove than ordinary carelessness; our Decision Day entry on Blackshear v City of Yonkers shows how the standard works for a fire truck.

Street Sweepers and Snowplows

With winter coming, plows and salt spreaders will soon be back on New York streets, and the exception can decide a case. In Riley itself, a jury found no recklessness in the operation of the county street sweeper, and in the companion case the claim against the State was dismissed at the close of the evidence for lack of proof that the snowplow driver acted recklessly. Both results were affirmed.

But a claim can still go forward. In Deleon v New York City Sanitation Dept., 25 NY3d 1102 (2015), a City sanitation street sweeper collided with a jeep. The Court of Appeals held that the recklessness standard applied, but the City still did not win dismissal before trial. There was evidence that the sweeper did not slow down or brake, and the Court explained: "If a factfinder concludes that the driver could, but failed to, take evasive action to avoid a forceful collision, a reasonable jury could find that this conduct rises to the recklessness standard" (25 NY3d at 1107).

Garbage Collection Is Different

Appeals courts have held that picking up trash is not the kind of work the exception covers. In Guzman v Bowen, 38 AD3d 837 (2d Dept 2007), the Second Department held: "Since the ordinary municipal refuse collection in which the garbage truck was engaged at the time of the accident is not such work, the statute is inapplicable." In 2024, in a case about a collision with a recycling truck in Syracuse, the Fourth Department agreed, holding that "municipal refuse collection does not involve building, repairing, or maintaining highways, painting pavement markings, removing snow, sanding the pavement, or doing other similar work" (Rouse v City of Syracuse Dept. of Pub. Works, 2024 NY Slip Op 03938 [4th Dept 2024]).

In 2016, the Legislature added "waste collection vehicle[s]" to the law's definition of a "hazard vehicle" (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 117-a). That change frees a garbage truck that is collecting trash from some stopping and parking rules, such as the ban on double parking (Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1103(b), 1202(a)). But the Fourth Department explained in Rouse that it "did not broaden the scope of work" covered by the exception. So if a garbage truck hit you while it was picking up trash, the ordinary rules of negligence may apply.

Driving Between Jobs Does Not Count

Even a plow or a sweeper is covered only while it is doing the work. In Orellana v Town of Carmel, 2024 NY Slip Op 05131, the Court of Appeals noted that the Appellate Division "has consistently held that drivers are not 'actually engaged in work on a highway' when they are merely traveling between work sites and not actively performing any protected task on the road itself." A town highway superintendent was driving back to his office when the collision happened. He was "merely using the road to return to work," so the exception did not apply. Since the town did not otherwise oppose the plaintiff's motion on liability, the Court granted her summary judgment on liability.

So the key question is what the vehicle was doing at the moment of the crash. In our experience, the police report may not definitively answer that question, so it may have to be answered with other evidence, such as witnesses and video.

When the Truck Belongs to the City

A claim against the City generally requires a Notice of Claim, served "within ninety days after the claim arises" (General Municipal Law § 50-e(1)(a)), and a lawsuit started within one year and 90 days (General Municipal Law § 50-i(1)). Different timing applies to a wrongful death claim: "the ninety days shall run from the appointment of a representative of the decedent's estate" (§ 50-e(1)(a)), and the lawsuit must be started "within two years after the happening of the death" (§ 50-i(1)). A claim for the person's own injuries before death may have earlier deadlines.

How the notice is served matters; see our post on the Notice of Claim rules for NYC Transit. A court may allow a late notice, but not always; in a recent case, police records of a crash did not give the City actual knowledge of the claim (see our Decision Day entry on Matter of Connolly v City of New York).

Many garbage trucks on New York City streets belong to private carting companies that serve businesses, not to the City (NYC Department of Sanitation). A claim against a private company does not require a Notice of Claim, but other deadlines apply.

What to Do After a Crash With a Work Vehicle

1. Get medical care, and follow your doctor's advice.
2. Write down the truck's number and the name of the agency or company on it, and what the truck was doing: sweeping, plowing, spreading salt, picking up trash, or simply driving.
3. Call the police and get the report number. Write down the names and phone numbers of witnesses.
4. Look for cameras on nearby buildings, stores, buses, and doorbells. Video can be recorded over in a matter of weeks; see our Decision Day entry on Fernandez v Port Authority.
5. Give written notice of your No-Fault claim within 30 days of the accident (11 NYCRR 65-1.1). We suggest speaking to a lawyer before you file, because anything you write or say in your claim may be used against you if there is a lawsuit.
6. Talk to a lawyer early, especially if the vehicle belonged to the City or another public entity, because of the 90-day Notice of Claim deadline. In some circumstances, your time to act may be even shorter.

If you were hurt in a crash with a garbage truck, street sweeper, snowplow, or other work vehicle, contact The Eskesen Law Firm for a free consultation. Calls are answered live 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Share: Facebook LinkedIn X Email