Another Yep Tour Bus Seized on Pike Street, Forced to Pay $4K in Traffic Violations
Photo: NYC Sheriff
Is Yep Tour’s number finally up?
The controversial intercity bus company is getting some serious heat from cops. Indeed, the New York City Sheriff is hot on its tail, so to speak, and struck again last Thursday night for the second time in three weeks. Officers seized another in its fleet, while also levying a fine of $4,000 for traffic violations in and around its operating hub of Pike Street and East Broadway. The bust happened right beside Extell’s One Manhattan Square.
Much like the January 11 seizure – which resulted in a $15K fine for Yep Tour – the Sheriff came armed with a “writ of execution.”
The bus company still owes upwards of $300K in various outstanding violations, according to the city’s Department of Finance. However, because Yep Tour is incorporated in Massachusetts, they’ve been exploiting a loophole whereby fines are not as easily collected.
Yep Tour tried again last November to legitimize its operation with an official intercity bus permit. And failed. The CB3 Transportation subcommittee concluded that rewarding a bad actor would set a dangerous precedent for other unchecked bus companies. The motion to deny a permit carried, alongside strongly-worded recommendation to the Department of Transportation to that effect.
Yep Tour nevertheless admitted that they’d continue to operate even if a permit remained elusive. Now it’s biting them in the ass.
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