Um, correct me if I'm wrong but the bike lane is (ideally) a convenience, not a law.
It would be great to use them if A. cars didn't blatantly double-park in them, and B. they weren't used as 'turn lanes' by vehicles.
THe irony is the city has spent a considerable amount of money in advertising and cameras to keep BUS LANES clear of cars. Would it be so tough to do the same for bike lanes?
Personally I now find riding my bike in bus lanes to be much more efficient.

Well the city has gone through efforts to make dedicated bicycle lanes, where they are between the sidewalk and the parked cars. See 8th and 9th ave and the strip of 1st ave south of 34th st.

The issue is that because of this many riders are now complaining that it's even less safe than before - http://thecityfix.com/more-on-bike-culture-criticism-of-nycs-first-avenue-bike-lane/

rightfully so - when I lived between 8th and 9th Ave. it was horrendous to watch drivers unaccustomed to the new traffic patterns adapt to them.

And I guess the city is trying to shoehorn riders into their ill-conceived plan, instead of having them rely on their ability to judge traffic for themselves. Personally I stick to the bike paths along the river where vehicular traffic is not an issue.

Another good article on this - http://my.firedoglake.com/alecdhall/2011/01/18/why-the-nypd-bicycle-crackdown-is-a-sign-of-how-new-york-sucks-in-2011/

#bikenyc

Being a daily rider (to work in the morning), I have pretty much experienced it all in terms of bicycle riding in the city. Clueless pedestrians 'hanging out' in the bike lane, waiting to cross the street, any and all types of vehicles using it as their convenient park space while they run their errands, maneuvering around garbage, puddles, pedestrians, dogs, etc. it goes on and on.

To get a ticket for not using the bike lane is one of those 'in the moment' things, unfortunately. You happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time - with a cop nearby.

I've gotten a ticket - from going through a red light, which bicyclists have done since the dawn of man (well, maybe a little later...). I just had to chalk it up to the fact that I should have been more AWARE that there was a cop 1/2 way down the block from where I had gone through the red light.

Oh well...