Traffic & Transit

Anti-Car Street Sign Hacks Continue In Prospect Heights: Photo

"Your car ruins NYC," a hacked digital sign on Vanderbilt Avenue told drivers.

A Vanderbilt Avenue sign told drivers, "Your car ruins NYC."
A Vanderbilt Avenue sign told drivers, "Your car ruins NYC." (Courtesy of Mark Yarish | Twitter)

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK — The anti-car street sign hackers struck again in Prospect Heights Thursday morning, according to new social media photos.

A large digital street sign on Vanderbilt Avenue between Park and Sterling places told drivers passing by, "Your car ruins NYC," according to a photo posted to Twitter.

"I think your sign has been hacked," Twitter user Mark Yarish wrote.

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The Department of Transportation responded that the variable-message sign belonged to an independent contractor whom they had notified.

This is the third anti-car street sign hack to pop in Brooklyn this week.

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On Monday, two digital street signs, initially meant to warn Park Slope drivers of construction ahead, flashed "Ban Cars, Stop Driving" and "Cars Ruin Cities" instead.

The signs appeared on Union Street, one between Seventh and Eighth avenues and another between Fifth and Sixth avenues, the Twitter user told the city's Department of Transportation.

Twitter users have since noted digital signs are not difficult to "hack" given that most come with the same default password.

The mysterious messages come a week after a fraught meeting about bike lanes erupted into a screaming match and as the number of cyclists to die in city streets mounts to record-breaking numbers.

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