Cycling improving in Manhattan + L.A.

by Larry Lagarde

For years, New Yorkers have been pushing for transportation alternatives that will make it safer & easier to get around NYC without a car. Recent projects (like turning a portion of Broadway into a bike/pedestrian corridor) and initiatives (such as the push for congestion pricing as a means to decrease auto use/congestion in Manhattan) show that residents are serious about making New York more sustainable. So to those in the know, the following news from bike group Transportation Alternatives should come as no surprise...

The East Side Revolution

Manhattan's East Side will soon see some transformative transportation changes.

First and Second Avenues are about to get a whole lot better for bikers, walkers and transit takers.

In response to T.A.'s East Side campaign, the Department of Transportation has committed to building better bus, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure from South Ferry to 125th Street. Included in the agency's plans are bike lanes, bus lanes and improved pedestrian crossings that will not only make these notoriously congested avenues safer, but also better-performing.

Though the DOT has yet to identify the exact configurations it will use when construction begins this June, all of the possibilities are huge improvements over the order-less mess that now rules the roads in this part of Manhattan, and we commend them, as well as the Volunteer Committee members, community stakeholders, local politicians and countless activists who helped the plan come together.

To ensure that this wave of street reform doesn't simply splash on to two avenues and wash away, Transportation Alternatives is organizing an East Side Streets Coalition to help spread these changes. With the support of T.A.'s Volunteer Committees, citizens and civic organizations from East Harlem to Chinatown, the East Side Coalition plans to push for streets that reduce pedestrian and cyclist injuries and fatalities from vehicle crashes by 50% in the next decade.

While this is great news for those on the East Side, it's notable that city planners and residents across the USA are finally recognizing the need for safer opportunities for biking and walking. Just yesterday, a story noted that car centric Los Angeles is creating a major bikeway network to decrease congestion and pollution.

Though the weather in L.A. is more conducive to cycling year round, L.A.'s population density of 1 family/acre makes travel distances longer than in New York City. Nevertheless, the fact that Los Angeles is taking serious steps to improve multi-modal commuting (via bikeway networks integrated with mass transit) holds hope that any community can have more sustainable transportation.