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]
“If someone wanders into the middle of the street… is the car/taxi/bus driver being “rude” when they honk at them (or even hit them)?!”tybur6
If they hit them when they could have stopped, then it is more than rude – its a crime; if the reason they strayed onto the street was to legitimately avoid some obstruction, and you honked and yelled obscenities at them – then yes that is rude and if it was in a no honking zone it is also a code violation.
“It’s not an us vs. them situation. You say the bridge is oh so crowded… yeah, it’s pretty crowded, but not so crowded that folks can’t stay on their own sides!!!” tybur6
Well I disagree and either way on the Brooklyn side, there is a point where their is no “side” since pedestrians have to cross the bike lane – do you stop or yield? Do other bicyclists?
Legitimate question – if it was determined that at certain times there were in fact too many pedestrians to fit in the designated walking lane, would you then take a more accommodating stance to pedestrians “wandering”?
P.S. Oooops, forgot an important phrase here. Should have said ‘without helmets’…
People riding bikes WITHOUT HELMETS over 15 mph over city streets and bridges have a view of reality that is so pollyanaish and so unrealistic I find it hard to take their suggestions seriously.
I will repost what I said in the “Blog Wrap” from yesterday…
Also, the bridge is about a mile-and-a-half long. Biking vs. walking — it’s the difference between a crossing time of about 10 minute and a half hour!
So, let’s get back to the purpose of the bridge for a second. We all seem to agree that *cars* have a place on the bridge, right!? Why? Because the bridge was BUILT to bring people and goods across the river.
Bicycles are a standard and necessary form of vehicular transportation. (Yes, necessary… try to fit another car on the bridge… and don’t counter with “take the subway” because the folks in cars can do that too!)
So, what groups is the unintended group? Wandering tourists. Should they be banned from the bridge? Of course not, but they should understand that walking into a lane for VEHICULAR TRAFFIC is not acceptable. If someone wanders into the middle of the street… is the car/taxi/bus driver being “rude” when they honk at them (or even hit them)?!
It’s not an us vs. them situation. You say the bridge is oh so crowded… yeah, it’s pretty crowded, but not so crowded that folks can’t stay on their own sides!!!
I will continue to use the bridge. I will *ride* my bike on the bridge. And I will continue to shout angrily and make all sorts of noises when pedestrians wander into the BICYCLE LANE. It’s not an issue of being a “higher life form” — it’s a matter of courtesy and safety. Yes, the lack of courtesy on the part of the walkers!
(You can make all the comments you want about bicycles breaking other traffic laws… but that has NOTHING to do with this issue. This is just about the Brooklyn Bridge.)
And I will add… I am most definitely in support of creating a bike lane on the “car” deck of the Brooklyn Bridge. Just accepting cars and always looking for ways to accommodate MORE volume is very backward thinking. Bicycles, walking and public transportation is both far more sustainable and probably necessary in many many ways.
There is no misunderstanding.
People riding bikes over 15 mph over city streets and bridges have a view of reality that is so pollyanaish and so unrealistic I find it hard to take their suggestions seriously.
They clearly fail to appreciate the risks of their behavior to themselves, which means they almost certainly underestimate the risks they pose to others.
Admittedly, bicycle helmets are unbelievably unattractive.
Some manufacturer could make a small fortune designing bike helmets that don’t make 40ish pot bellied urbanites look so silly.
and adults are not required to act like adults either(obviously).
I trained for the marathon by running over that bridge a few thousand times. Love that place.
Aside from the high speed stupidity of a pretty significant number of cyclists, why should a small number of cyclists get the same amount of space as 5-10 times more pedestrians? Yep, I have counted.
Close a road lane to cars. Give pedestrians and cycles both more space and let the cars wait. And in meantime, maybe the cyclists could slow the $%#$ down.
“I guess his helmet didn’t protect him?”
There seems to be this misunderstanding about helmet laws. Adults are not required to wear helmets in NY.
“More bikes, less cars. And cyclists (of which I am one), please do not speed and breakneck speed and PLEASE do not scream in a poor, unsuspecting tourist’s ear when they unwittingly block the bike lane. I’ve seen it a million times and it’s horribly rude and gives all cyclists a bad name.
Thank you.”
Now get the f*ck off the road, you effin tourist, go the f*ck back to Ohio you fat asshat!
Biff, that’s how we usually do it around here 🙂
“you have your slow moving tourists who gobble up real estate in packs, your nutball photographers taking every cliched shot, your walking commuters, and even the occasional idiot jogger”
You know, there are plenty of spacious suburbs in America…