Updates for Manhattan Bridge Bicyclists
Workers have been, um, at work at the base of the Manhattan Bridge bike lane in Brooklyn for a while now. We stopped to talk to them over the weekend, and they said they are building a barrier wall for the bike lane, separating it from Sands Street as well as the grassy hill on…
Workers have been, um, at work at the base of the Manhattan Bridge bike lane in Brooklyn for a while now. We stopped to talk to them over the weekend, and they said they are building a barrier wall for the bike lane, separating it from Sands Street as well as the grassy hill on the north side. They also said they are making slight improvements to the lane itself. In other news, automobiles are still confusing the new elevated bike lane along Sands Street for parking:
“funny how i’ve gotten hit by bikes dozens of times in my life”
Rob – you’ve made a point of saying you stand in bike lanes on purpose when crossing the street and walk out in front of them.
Arkady, I know of an awful accident between a frail old chap and a bicyclist (not in the US) that left the old guy bedridden for the rest of his days. I think that now bike riding is increasing in popularity, which is a good thing, steps need to be taken to keep it reasonably safe for everyone. A free-for-all will only end in tears. Simple licensing is a start, a cycling proficiency test and car driver education will all help.
When I run for mayor, traffic rule enforcement, dog-poop enforcement, bike rule enforcement and littering enforcement will be my only campaign platforms.
On my street, that has a bike lane, bikers use the entire street, not just the lane & they’re often going the wrong way. An old lady almost got knocked down yesterday because she had only looked in the direction of traffic & the biker only j-u-s-t missed her at the last minute.
I agree with your there tybur, I’m still amazed (though I should have become inured to it by now) at the awful driving that is ignored here by the NYPD. My particular bugbear is immature guys racing at high speed down narrow residential streets and immature guys cutting in and out of traffic at high speed, and zipping into people’s stopping distances, like its a playstation game.
funny how i’ve gotten hit by bikes dozens of times in my life, but never by a car. things that make you go hmmmm. like i said, i am NOT pro car. i think they are just as lame as bikes. we have feet people, use them!
*rob*
Rob — I actually have absolutely no problem with that idea. HOWEVER… I would like to suggest, as I did yesterday, that half of the bad bicycle behavior is engendered by the aggressive, disrespectful and dangerous automobile driving! When you get on a bike in NYC, you take on a certain aggressive, survival attitude…
So, feel free to ticket me if I do something bad on my bike… but I’m thinking dangerous, reckless driving that is DEADLY should be tackled first. In the 3 years I’ve lived here, I’ve seen a total of 3 cars pulled over. And I’m assuming it’s because they were black and not because of their traffic violation. I’ve lived in 2 other *major* cities in this country and spent a lot of time in major cities around the world… the amazingly dangerous crap that goes on here would NEVER be tolerated anywhere else.
Oh, and all (err… most) of these drivers here have these magic driver’s licenses you want bicyclists to have…
(To be honest, I think it’s sort of silly that they raised the bike lane. But since they did, it makes me think of a pretty good solution — they should cut out from the “buffer” little half parking spots periodically… basically designated double-parking areas for “live loading only” The bike lane would be untouched, it would remain protected because there wouldn’t be a reason to drive up there, and delivery trucks would have a place to go… and not even block the parked cars)
Posted by: tybur6 at September 30, 2009 10:07 AM
Excellent idea, in theory.
Perhaps you could get FedEx to use a big-ass bike with a parcel trailer.
this is cool and all, but this kind of work and infrastructure costs money. i think people who ride bikes on public roads should be forced to have a license and have to take a written and road test just like people do for cars. it would be a great source of revenue for the city and would cut down on negligent bikers on the road. also a great source of revenue to write up tickets for bikers with no license. things on wheels, ALL kinds of wheels are dangerous and should be treated equally under the law. what’s good for the goose is good for the moose.
*rob*