Bikes and Bodies on the Brooklyn Bridge
In the weekend New York Times, Robert Sullivan tackles the nightmare that we all know and many avoid: the Brooklyn Bridge elevated path. Designated half pedestrian walkway, half bike lane, the white line separating the two is never enough. Tourists often wander across the line with cameras glued to their faces, unaware of the cyclists…
In the weekend New York Times, Robert Sullivan tackles the nightmare that we all know and many avoid: the Brooklyn Bridge elevated path. Designated half pedestrian walkway, half bike lane, the white line separating the two is never enough. Tourists often wander across the line with cameras glued to their faces, unaware of the cyclists zooming towards them; and cyclists, well, sometimes they zoom too much. Sullivan’s solution: instead of signs and bollards, just separate the two—give bicyclists a protected lane on the lower level, among the cars. This suggestion will surely sound unpleasant to many bicyclists: they will lack the scenic views of the upper level and it sounds like a bad deal for anyone who enjoys breathing oxygen. Sullivan resisted the idea as well, but argues that “if we bicyclists cede the Brooklyn Bridge walkway, then it might be a step toward winning the public’s respect. Then, just maybe, pedestrians would call a truce and recognize that their real enemy is the car …” It’s a respectable argument, one definitely worth mulling over, but we still voted no on the Gothamist poll asking whether bikes should be banned from the upper level (64 percent said yes at the time of writing this post).
Bicyclists vs. Pedestrians: An Armistice [NY Times]
Vote: Ban Bikes from the Brooklyn Bridge Walkway? [Gothamist]
Also… on the Manhattan side, the two bridges are almost a mile apart. So if you work in or visit the bottom bit of Manhattan, that’s the closer bridge. PLUS, if you use the bike path on the West Side (which is grrrreat) you can come from anywhere in Manhattan. Going cross-town from the West Side highway up four block on Warren Street is MUCH more pleasant and SAFER than the 10 or 12 blocks on Canal Street (or similar) to get to the blue bridge.
Folks;
Late to the party, with just one slightly off-the-wall observation. It is a sign of Brooklyn (and NYC’s) progress that we have this problem. Consider the following:
-at one time the BB had trolleys running on it (Tybur6?). They were torn up in the early 50’s to make more room for cars.
-I can remember that it was not too long ago when you were considered nutso to walk on the BB, especially after dusk, due to the crime.
So, this is a “happy” challenge: more pedestrians and bikes!
Clearly something needs to be done. I ride my bike over there on ocassion, and I also feel like it’s an accident that is waiting to happen. I agree with the proposal to set aside part of the roadway for bikes as a first step.
“what will they do about that crazy roller blade guy who seems to WANT to hit tourists and pedestrians? He is always skating at top speed and screaming at and shouldering everybody who is one inch into the bike (nowhere does it say rollerblade path, buddy) lane”
Fortunately, I’ve never run into this guy, literally or figuratively. Now I’ll know to be on the lookout. Thanks for the warning, Beau Gest.
Pete – You are basically proposing a bicycle ban on the Brooklyn Bridge?! Either official or de facto (getting rid of the bike lane perhaps… or just not trying to make conditions better for all involved)
Bicycles and pedestrians should be accommodated! Not forced elsewhere. Biking and walking need to be made more attractive. Cars have their place, but taking away the incentives for cars is not a bad thing…. especially going into the city. Not necessarily suggesting tolls on the bridges, that sort of punishes folks that *need* to drive and this city can’t seem to understand “peak” vs. “non-peak” driving (driving during off-peak hours should be incentivized)
Riding a bike across *any* of the bridges should be ENCOURAGED and IMPROVED. Traffic calming to take place so perhaps bike riders don’t get into a mindset of aggression… just go to prospect park when it’s open to cars. The car drivers are out to get you! And immediately you go from “happy cruise in the park” to “i wanna fuck you up and smash your windshield” But, the NYPD doesn’t feel the need to slow cars down to below Indy 500 speeds… in the PARK.
I’m a little all over the place here. But there are a lot of contributing factors. Bikers are aggressive for many reasons and many of them are survival instincts engendered by the way traffic, in general, in handled/enforced in this city. There are terrible stop light sequences all over the city that basically *require* a driver to drive aggressively and very fast unless they want to stop at every single light… stuff like that.
I’m a share-the-road sort of chap, but that attitude is not shared by many. Anything to make biking in Brooklyn and anywhere else in this city better… I’m all for it.
There’s no way the city is going to dedicate a part of the Brooklyn Bridge car tier to bikes– it’s a feeder for two major highways– the BQE and the FDR! What I don’t understand is why bikers insist on riding so fast on the bridge. If they biked at roughly the same speed of the walkers or joggers, the terror factor would be reduced considerably. They would even have ample time to stop if a wayward tourist stepped in their path!
Go over the manhattan bridge instead – better work out and no annoying peds to get in your way.
My two cents…the Brooklyn Bridge walkway is a hazard as long as the pedestrians have to share the walkway with bike traffic. There is no way to convince tourists not to dart suddenly or block the pathway trying to get photographs. To them, it’s just an observation deck the same as on the Empire State Building or 30 Rock. Try convincing someone from Kansas who takes their car to the end of their drive to pick up the mail that people actually walk–or actually bike to get to work or home. It just doesn’t occur to them. You can’t convince happy families to NOT hold hands all the way across the pathway or push double-wide strollers either. To them it’s a pleasure stroll on their vacation. The fact that they are impeding legitimate commuter traffic does not cross their minds. Mind you, they’d all lay on their horns big time if you were trying to take a picture in the middle of their way home at rush hour. But we can’t help it that our way home is their once-in-a-lifetime vacation so it is best to deal with it. We are lucky our commute has such a breathtaking view. If you want to not be impeded, take the Manhattan Bridge–otherwise, get used to pedestrians in your way, whether you are a biker, jogger or fast walker. Even if they make a dedicated bike lane, what will they do about that crazy roller blade guy who seems to WANT to hit tourists and pedestrians? He is always skating at top speed and screaming at and shouldering everybody who is one inch into the bike (nowhere does it say rollerblade path, buddy) lane. I openly long for the day I see that guy have a major leg-breaking wipeout.
so Tybur6, wouldn’t it be easier to use the manhattan bridge and not deal with the congestion on brooklyn bridge?
even if couple blocks out of way.. less stressful and save time.
FSRQ —
#1) If a pedestrian wanders in front of you in the street, honking is not illegal because blowing a horn for emergencies is perfectly legal…
#2) If I’m driving my car at 25 mph and a person steps off the sidewalk in front of me… they are crushed. I’m not at fault. This tends to be the sort of situation on the Brooklyn Bridge. They just step into the bike lane all of a sudden.
#3) I do yield for the pedestrian exit, so perhaps I’m one of the few? But the fact is, pedestrians are ALSO supposed to yield… It’s like any other place in traffic. Think of an on-ramp on the highway, the entering car is the *new* variable and they have to be conscious of the *existing* condition. There’s a white line on pathway — I am about to cross it to exit, maybe I should be conscious of the fact that there are *existing conditions* on the other side of the line. Also, I yield (slow) and stop if I must… but since the pedestrian is crossing the bike lane, there is a bit of a right-of-way thing there… no? I’m talking about a simple expectation for the pedestrians to have a modicum of awareness of their surroundings. Why is being on a bridge an excuse for that now to take place?
#4) To your legitimate question… so be it. If there are indeed too many pedestrians, then give us a bike lane on the lower deck!! (A PROTECTED bike lane with a separation that cannot be breached by traffic, like the orange poles in the battery tunnel separating the lanes… they can be driven over by emergency vehicles)
If you want to go on the upper, scenic deck… you can walk your bike. Reduce the car lanes (which would actually get to be a bit wider, which would be nice) and create a better system for merging and exiting. I am all for reducing the volume of automobile traffic going over the Brooklyn Bridge. (Especially if they ticket the cars heavily for honking when stuck in traffic — that doesn’t do anything to help.)