A rally this morning to keep the busway and bike lanes added for the L-train shutdown

[Photo from January by Steven]

This morning at 10, Transportation Alternatives is hosting a "Stay, Bus & Bikeway!" rally on 14th Street at First Avenue.

Here are details, via the Facebook invite:

The L Train bus and bike lanes are halfway done. Join Transportation Alternatives and commuters everywhere to demand that the NYC Mayor commit to the best versions of Manhattan's 14th Street and North Brooklyn's Grand Street

Rally for L Train Bus and Bike Lanes
Feb 6th @ 10 a.m.

The transit advocacy group has said it would be a mistake for the city to reverse course on the 14th Street bus lane additions and the 12th Street and 13th Street bike lanes now that L service between Manhattan and Brooklyn will only be shut down on nights and weekends. You can read more at this Streetsblog post from Jan. 28.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: The L-train's weekend repair plans would mean exit-only stations on 1st and 3rd avenues

L-train non-shutdown fallout: Bike lane battle shaping up along 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane extravaganza

First!
A reminder that tonight is the bike lane/pedestrian island, etc. protest on 14th Street at First Avenue...



We all had a few things to say about this here. (147 comments!)

Second!

Last Friday, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer held a press conference on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place to reveal results of an “unprecedented survey of bike lane safety.”

Stringer and company compiled during data during morning and evening rush hours between Oct. 5 and Oct. 7 And he found down here:

• Dooring (car doors opening as a cyclist approaches) – 19 infractions at St. Marks Place & Second Avenue; 77 total infractions

The Lo-Down was at the news conference and has a full report here.

Columnist Michael Goodwin didn't think much of Stringer's plan at the Post:

Cycle of stupidity

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer sent his staff out to stare at dopey bike lanes popping up all over town. They saw all kinds of what he called safety violations, ranging from taxis and pedestrians using the lanes to cyclists going the wrong way and running red lights.

His answer: a bigger bureaucracy and higher costs. Stringer wants better signs, a public-awareness campaign and strict enforcement by cops.

No thanks. The NYPD is cutting back on anti-terror teams because it doesn't have the cash. Further diluting the force by having cops patrol bike lanes makes about as much sense as the lanes themselves, which is zero.

Third!

How about using these experimental bike lane spotters like the one here on Fifth Street and First Avenue to crack down on law-breaking cyclists, motorists, pedestrians, skateboarders and Rite Aid shoppers...





Fourth!

There are signs up now offering some directions...




Lastly!

When are we getting lanes for unicyclists! These guys are psychos!

New bike lanes next for freshly paved Avenue C

The city repaved Avenue C from Houston to 18th Street in mid-July (maybe your car was towed during the milling/paving process?). 

All this was done ahead of improvements along the avenue for pedestrians and cyclists. 

DOT flyers are up now along Avenue C with details of the coming changes...

Improvements along C include: 

• Curbside bike lanes between Houston and Fourth Street 

• Parking-protected, bollard-protected and curbside bike lanes between Fourth Street and 18th Street 

• Updated parking regulations to provide truck loading zones 

• Neighborhood loading zones on select side streets 

• Painted pedestrian islands between 11th Street and 15th Street 

• New left-turn bays at 10th Street and 14th Street 

You can find many more details in the presentation that DOT officials made to CB3 back in April. (PDF here)

As reported last fall, the DOT is adding the protected north/south bike lanes on Avenue C and East Houston Street to help offset the closure of the East River Park greenway once construction starts someday.

Green paint arrives on the new 12th Street bike lane

On Wednesday, crews painted the new eastbound bike lane on 12th Street... I spotted them between Second Avenue and Avenue A ...







The bike lane for 13th Street arrived at the beginning of the month.

Meanwhile...

Time elapsed between painting the new 12th street bike lanes and people parking in them 1.0234seconds. #bikenyc @bikeblognyc @evgrieve #eastvillageParking #workingclass @bikesnobnyc pic.twitter.com/38ezAPTQFX

— Christopher J Ryan (@ChrisRyanAction) November 21, 2018

As previously reported, the city put in a bike lane on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B separated from traffic with a painted buffer ahead of the April L-train closure.

The bike lanes are just one of the ways the city hopes to keep people/commuters moving during the 15 (or so) months that the Canarsie Tunnel under the East River gets repaired.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

DOT puts down the green paint on the new 13th Street bike lane (except for one mysterious spot)

Councilmember Rivera introducing new bill to protect bike lanes in construction zones

[EVG photo from June at 75 1st Ave.]

In other bike-related news... District 2 City Councilmember Carlina Rivera, along with advocates and neighborhood residents, is announcing the introduction of a new bill this morning that will require holders of DOT permits that authorize construction or equipment on the street to preserve any impacted bike lanes with a safe and sufficient detour.

Per Rivera's office:

This includes any specifically marked bicycle lane, whether it has painted, separated and protected, or a bike path. Any detour bike lane would have to feature protective barriers and be three-quarters the size of the original lane, unless that would make the detour lane less than 4 feet wide. The bill would also require DOT to notify community boards as well as post on their website when any permitted construction impacts a bike lane.

Councilwoman Rivera is pursuing this legislation after hearing about construction projects in her district and elsewhere where bicyclists were being forced out of protected bike lanes and directly into car traffic with little notice right for riders or drivers.

Rivera recently spoke with Streetsblog about this proposed legislation:

You said a specific location in your district spurred you to introduce this bill.

It’s on First Avenue between Fourth and Fifth streets, right on the west side where the bike lane is. There was construction there, and there was no detour. As someone who cycles up First Avenue all the time, I can tell you that as soon as you got to that street, it just said, “Bike lane closed.” So you have to go and venture into the traffic, and you know that First avenue is incredibly busy, not just with [cars], but with the SBS, the M15.

There was no sign. There were no protective barriers. This was something people contacted our office about repeatedly, so we know that we really had to legislate this in order to protect cyclists everywhere.

Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

A movement is underway to secure two-way bike lanes on Avenue B, an increasingly congested 14-block corridor currently without any marked paths for cyclists such as on Avenue A and Avenue C.

The awareness campaign commenced along the Avenue this past Friday...

Big day today! We’re kicking off our campaign for a protected #bikeNYC lane on Avenue B! Can’t wait to make this street safer for all the schools and commuters in the East Village! @TransAlt pic.twitter.com/5RiyA4XQLD

— Sam Bleiberg (@SamBleiberg) April 12, 2019

The idea came about via parents who bike their children to area schools — including the East Village Community School, the Children's Workshop School, Tompkins Square Middle School, the Earth School and East Side Community High School.

After presenting the idea to, and receiving support from, the East Village Community School Parent Association, East Village resident and parent Choresh Wald approached Transportation Alternatives, who has endorsed the proposal and is helping spread the word via #BikeAveB on social media.

East Village knows that #bikeNYC is here, and lanes are coming! 🌸 #BikeAveB kickoff this morning was a huge success. Thanks @TransAlt volunteers @TA_Ambassadors for promoting our May 20th #bikemonth ride-to-school ✏️ 👨🏾‍🏫🚲 on Ave B! Sign the petition: https://t.co/QDwhiv6G2X pic.twitter.com/7Uvdi3Wwub

— Chelsea Skye (@pekochel) April 12, 2019

There's now a petition in circulation, which you can find here.

Per the petition, which is signed by Wald:

A historical source of Alphabet City's fight for tenants rights and neighborhood empowerment, Avenue B today is a vibrant 14-block stretch in the East Village that is lined with schools, cultural institutions and community gardens. Tompkins Square Park, the adjacent libraries and burgeoning night life combine to make Avenue B an increasingly busy corridor for people on foot and on two wheels.

Despite being a narrow avenue, Avenue B allows two-way travel for cars, but has no dedicated lanes for anybody who wants to ride a bicycle. Yet parents and neighbors alike are already choosing to ride down this unsafe corridor.

To make the problem worse, trucks and commercial vehicles have no curbside loading zones. Every day we see them double-parking in order to make deliveries to the dozens of small businesses along Avenue B.


[EVG photo]

We need a safe, two-way protected bike lane on Avenue B, complete with pedestrian safety improvements!

The closure of the East River bike path as part of the upcoming East River Coastal Resiliency plan adds real urgency to the situation. The loss of the East River Greenway park facilities for several years will increase demand to transform Avenue B into a street that can be safer for all users.

By local law, our youngest New Yorkers are allowed to ride on the sidewalk until they are 14 years old. But some of us can't afford to allow them to bike independently given the current conditions of our streets. Community Board 3, we need your help! When our daughters and sons turn 14 years old they will need a safe place to bike on Avenue B.

We've heard from several residents in recent months about an increase in traffic from commercial vehicles in part due to the arrival of Target last summer on 14th Street between Avenue A and Avenue B (at least one other big-box store is expected in the retail space below the newish residential building EVGB) ...


[EVG photo from February]

... and the ongoing presence of the private trash-truck operators making the early-morning rounds...





Wald and other parents plan to meet with City Councilmember Carlina Rivera's office in the next few weeks to share their proposal. Wald also hopes to present the plan to Community Board 3 early this summer.

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

As we reported on Wednesday, crews are laying the pedalers’ paths and new parking lanes for the protected bike lanes on the north curb of 12th Street from Seventh Avenue to Avenue C, and the south curb of 13th Street from Greenwich Avenue to Avenue B.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz noted this morning that workers are creating the bike-lane outlines on 12th Street ... with crews spotted at First Avenue...





... and heading east toward Avenue C...



One worker told Lola that the green machine is on Greenwich today painting the bike lanes... and making its way toward the east...

Previously on EV Grieve:
Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Reminders: CB3 to hear plan for protected bike lanes on Avenue C-East Houston Street

As noted last week, the DOT is proposing permanent protected bike lanes on Avenue C and East Houston Street to offset the closure of the East River Park greenway once construction starts in the spring. 

As Streetsblog first reported: "The lanes will run on Houston from Second Avenue to the waterfront and on Avenue C from Houston north to 20th Street, enabling cyclists traveling from below Houston on the existing bike lanes on Pike and Allen streets to connect with the bike network further north." 

So here's a reminder: CB3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee will hear the proposal tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. The Zoom info is here.  

There are two other items on the agenda that might be of interest:

• DOT Freight & Mobility Unit: Houston St. Cargo Bike Corral Proposal and delivery strategy updates
• Open Restaurant street on Avenue B at 2nd Street: safety issues including emergency lane

East River Park updates: Construction pushed to 2021; protected bike lanes proposed for Avenue C and East Houston

 Here are the latest updates about the $1.45 billion storm protection project for East River Park:

  - The start of construction, which had been slated to commence this fall, will be delayed until the spring of 2021, according to a presentation the city made at a CB3 committee meeting last month. For further reading: BoweryBoogie and Bedford & Bowery.

- The DOT will propose permanent protected bike lanes on Avenue C and East Houston Street to offset the closure of the East River Park greenway once construction starts. 

    As Streetsblog first reported: "The lanes will run on Houston from Second Avenue to the waterfront and on Avenue C from Houston north to 20th Street, enabling cyclists traveling from below Houston on the existing bike lanes on Pike and Allen streets to connect with the bike network further north." 

    CB3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee will hear the proposal on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The Zoom info is here. 

- The full CB3 last week voted to preserve the East River Park's Art Deco Track House and Tennis Center Comfort Station.

  Via the EVG inbox:

Endorsing a proposal put forth by the Lower East Side Preservation Initiative, CB3 voted to recommend that the buildings, adorned with unique maritime terra cotta decorations, be raised to the Park's new grade level and renovated rather than demolished, thereby protecting them from future rising tides.

The CB3 resolution calls for amending the plans of the City's controversial East Side Coastal Resiliency Project. Those plans call for the demolition of the two structures and their replacement with standardized modern structures of the kind planned for parks all over New York City.

Now the city just needs to buy into the plan.

Meanwhile, tomorrow afternoon at 4, you may may watch the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project Community Advisory Group's next public meeting about the project. Submit questions or comments in advance. Watch on the Pratt Center for Community Development’s Facebook page. 

The hotly contested flood-protection plan will bury/elevate East River Park by eight feet as part of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project. 

You can read more about various community efforts at the East River Park ACTION website. You can find the city's East Side Coastal Resiliency Project website here. 

What happened to the bike lanes on East 9th Street and East 10th Street?

[East 9th Street at 1st Avenue]

Several EVG readers have pointed out that, after the milling and paving on East Ninth Street and East 10th Street earlier this year, the bike lanes have yet to reappear.

Says one reader: "We might still be waiting patiently except there was lane re-painting done on Ninth between First and Second but not for bikes!"


[East 9th Street looking east toward 1st Avenue]

So as far as we can tell, the bike lanes are gone on East Ninth Street from Avenue A to Fourth Avenue … and on East 10th Street between First Avenue to Fourth Avenue …


[East 10th Street looking east at 1st Avenue]


[East 9th Street looking west at 2nd Avenue]

The reader was particularly disconcerted about the lack of lanes on East 10th Street — "much more heavily trafficked by both bikes and cars."

P.S.
Who will be the first to note that the delivery guy in the above photo ran the light and nearly hit a pedestrian?

City continues 14th Street prep work ahead of the L-train closure

[14th Street at 4th Avenue looking east yesterday]

In recent weeks, I've noted how the city continues to prep 14th Street for its expanded role during the 15-month L-train closure next spring, including the markings for the Select Bus Service (SBS) lane between First Avenue and Third Avenue and the arrival of the dedicated bike lanes on 12th Street and 13th Street.

As previously reported, 14th Street will serve as a (mostly) car free busway for displaced subway commuters.

In an article posted Tuesday, Crain's (HT KT!) pointed out the latest alteration: red traffic lanes at 14th Street intersections between Third Avenue and Ninth Avenue, "which will signal that motorists must exit."

To Crain's:

By April, white Bus Only wording will be stenciled in the black boxes to make the message clear. Similar restricted lanes are planned for Delancey Street between the Williamsburg Bridge and the Bowery.

You can kind of see the full effect in this dodging-traffic shot...



And next?

Also to come are pedestrian walkways on 14th Street to relieve jammed sidewalks, as well as designated curbside loading zones for businesses.

This is what that plan (unveiled this past summer) looks like via the city...



Meanwhile, here's (part of) the area in front of the future tech hub, which will be a construction zone starting in the first quarter of 2019 ... likely making 14th Street even more stressed...



Back to Crain's:

The storm-related repairs to the East River crossing could drive 275,000 daily underground commuters to ground level at 14th Street, where the city plans to direct cars from the thoroughfare and run 80 buses per hour.

This SBS service launches on Sunday, April 21.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Nightmare scenario for residents who learn that 14th Street and Avenue A will be the main staging area for the L-train reconstruction

Prepping for the new protected bike lanes on 12th and 13th streets

Bike lane line work continues on 12th Street

1st signs of the 14th Street SBS lane

More signs of the 14th Street SBS lanes

East Houston Street reconstruction won't include protected bike lanes

Bowery Boogie had the news last week about the reconstruction of East Houston from the Bowery to the FDR.




The project, which will be put out to bid this summer, calls for the widening of sidewalks, enlarging of medians, installation of new pavement markings and bicycle lanes from Second Avenue to FDR Drive; and creation of two new plaza areas.

StreetsBlog.org breaks it down for bicyclists. As they note, the project calls for bigger sidewalks but no protected bike zone. (StreetsBlog published this depection of East Houston; the existing street is shown in the inset)



As Streetsblog notes:

Currently, 70 percent of drivers on East Houston Street speed, according to studies conducted by Transportation Alternatives. "It's hard to imagine that paint will offer the kind of protection mainstream New Yorkers will need to feel safe biking on this crucial, yet dangerous corridor," said TA's Wiley Norvell. "The city has innovative physically-protected designs on hand, and to not use them on Houston would be a huge missed opportunity."

In response, DOT emphasized the project's pedestrian improvements. DOT considers protected bike paths less-than-ideal for typical two-way streets, and the agency expects the removal of two traffic lanes to reduce vehicle speeds.

Even if traffic calms somewhat, the buffered lane will invite the same double-parking that plagues other Class 2 lanes. People choose to bike based on their perceptions of safety, and a buffer can only shift perceptions so far.

"Houston is by no means a typical two way street," said Norvell. "It is exactly the type of wide arterial roadway that calls for a physically separated lane. This city's bike network will continue to remain unusable for the average New Yorker until streets like Houston are provided with the protected lanes they require to be safe."

Meanwhile, the project is expected to be completed in 2011. Which, if you're cynical, means 2013. Or so. And improvements aside, I can't help but wonder how much the reconstruction may change the character of the street.

Parents, students ride together in bid for 2-way protected bike lane on Avenue B

[Photo via @pekochel]

Members of the East Village biking community along with street safety advocates came together yesterday morning to make their case for a protected two-way bike lane on Avenue B.

Big turnout this AM as cyclists, adults and kids alike, call for a protected bike lane on Ave B. #BikeAveB #BikeNYC pic.twitter.com/KyvU2cHzOH

— Bike Commuter NYC (@driversofnyc) May 20, 2019

As the #BikeAveB petition notes:

Despite being a narrow avenue, Avenue B allows two-way travel for cars, but has no dedicated lanes for anybody who wants to ride a bicycle. Yet parents and neighbors alike are already choosing to ride down this unsafe corridor.

To make the problem worse, trucks and commercial vehicles have no curbside loading zones. Every day we see them double-parking in order to make deliveries to the dozens of small businesses along Avenue B.

We need a safe, two-way protected bike lane on Avenue B, complete with pedestrian safety improvements!

[Photo from yesterday]

On June 19, East Village parent Choresh Wald, who helped launch the initiative, will make the case for the bike lanes before Community Board 3's Transportation, Public Safety, & Environment Committee. The meeting starts at 6:30 at the University Settlement, Houston Street Center, 273 Bowery.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

Today in bike lane grumbling

The Times has a piece titled Expansion of Bike Lanes Brings Backlash. To the story!

The City Council will hold a hearing on bicycling on Dec. 2 to address balancing the needs of cyclists with those of other road users, said Councilman James Vacca, the chairman of the Transportation Committee. The hearing will also look at how well the Transportation Department has worked with community boards to review large-scale road changes.

Meanwhile, the Police Department and the Transportation Department have begun a crackdown on bicycle-related traffic violations amid complaints from some pedestrians.

Surging bike ridership has created a simmering cultural conflict between competing notions of urban transportation. Many New Yorkers object to bicycle lanes as sudden, drastic changes to their coveted concrete front yards.

“He’s taking away my rights as a driver,” Leslie Sicklick, 45, said of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Ms. Sicklick, a dog walker and substitute teacher, grew up driving with her father around the Lower East Side, where she still lives.

She organized a protest in the East Village last month, and she and at least two groups of opponents are planning new rallies against local bicycle lanes. They have discussed joining up for one large protest, though none has been planned. “To me, Union Square is a perfect place to do the protest,” Ms. Sicklick said, “because it’s one of the worst areas created by the new bike lanes.”

Read the whole story here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Protest planned for reconfigured Avenues (153 comments)

A ride to raise awareness for a protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B

Tomorrow morning, a group of neighborhood parents and their children will gather for a bike ride to school... in show of support for a protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B.

As we first reported on April 15, a movement is underway to secure bike lanes on Avenue B, an increasingly congested 14-block corridor currently without any marked paths for cyclists such as on Avenue A and Avenue C.

The idea came about via parents who bike their children to area schools — including the East Village Community School, the Children's Workshop School, Tompkins Square Middle School, the Earth School and East Side Community High School.

You can read more via a petition at this link.

As for tomorrow (Monday) morning, there are now two start locations — Grand and Clinton and the Stuy Town-14th Street loop just north of Avenue B.

Here's part of the invite:

Will you ride your bike with us on the morning of Monday, May 20 as New Yorkers come together to demand a safe, protected two‑way bike lane on Avenue B?

We invite East Village neighbors on a family-paced group ride of solidarity with parents who are already biking their children to school, just in time for morning drop-off. We’ll end our ride at local bike-friendly business The Roost, at 222 Avenue B, for an optional cup of coffee afterwards.

If you haven’t already, please sign our #BikeAveB online petition for a two‑way protected bike lane and join hundreds of families who are already asking for safer way to bike to school.

[Photo by Sam Bleiberg]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Making the case for 2-way bike lanes on Avenue B

Crain's poll: 'Should we pull the plug on Manhattan bike lanes?'

Crain's is asking, not me.... You can read what they have to say here.

Here are the questions to study beforehand:

Yes. The only thing all these bike lanes have accomplished is the near impossible feat of making traffic in Manhattan even worse. If people want to ride a bike, let them go to Central Park.

No. Dedicated bike lanes are essential to making cycling in the city a safe, viable, totally green way to get around town.

Report: Cops blame cyclist for being assaulted on his bike

A cyclist who says he was knocked off his bike while riding on First Avenue is infuriated over the NYPD's response to his assault.

Gothamist has the story of Wilfred Chan, 28, who was riding north on First Avenue Wednesday afternoon when a man, standing in the gray pedestrian median of the crosswalk at Fourth Street, forced him off his bike.

"As I was approaching, we made eye contact, and I noticed he was staring pretty intensely at me," Chan said. Chan initially had been cycling in the bike lane, but says he swerved out into the car lane to avoid pedestrians standing in the bike lane. "I was going 20 MPH so it didn't make sense to be in the bike lane," he added. "I was comfortably keeping pace with traffic, and I had the green light."

As he passed the intersection at Fourth Street, Chan says the man stepped out from the crosswalk and kicked him off his bike. He swerved left into the orange barrier between the car and bike lanes, crashed, flipped over and landed in the bike lane on his head. As a result of the fall, he was bleeding from a gash on his forehead; he injured his elbow; and his bike was mangled, with the front wheel and handle bars twisted.

Then...

By this point, a crowd of bystanders had gathered, several of whom had witnessed what happened to Chan. When the man tried to leave, Chan says some onlookers tried to keep him there, and a fight broke out, with several punches thrown. At this point, it attracted the attention of some nearby NYPD officers from the 9th Precinct.

Chan says he told them what had happened, but was met with immediate skepticism and aggressive questioning. According to Chan, the officers accused him of changing his story because he wasn't sure if the man kicked his bike or put his foot in front of the bike.

"They immediately started gaslighting me," Chan said. "They had an idea already of what happened, and anything I said did not matter. They approached with a demeanor of deep suspicion and skepticism at everything I said, I felt like I was the one being interrogated rather than the person who kicked me off my bike."

Parting thoughts...

"To me, the main point is just the utter and willful inadequacy of the police as a system for keeping the city safe for cyclists," he said. "We face terrifying threats every day just trying to get from point A to B and the city has repeatedly shown it does not give a fuck. The cops' attitude to me totally confirmed this — the fact that I was on a bike meant I had no rights. That if I got hurt, even if someone attacked me, it was my fault."

Read the full post here.

EVG photo of First Avenue and Fourth Street from earlier this summer.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reader reports: The NYPD forcibly stops a Citi Biker on Avenue A for his own safety

More on the Day of the Dead bike ride

I had a post Monday on the Day of the Dead bike ride in the East Village. The organizers sent me this wrap up of the events that took place Sunday:

Cyclists, zombified with white and black face paint and dressed in bright, festive colors, took downtown Manhattan for a two hour ride on Sunday, November 2. They rose the dead with loud cheers, "viva bicicletas!" (live on bicycles) and "celebramos los muertos!" (celebrate the dead), in addition to visiting sites of cyclists hit and killed by cars and holding mock funerals.

Village environmental group Time's Up! organized the Day of the Dead bike ride in order to promote safer streets and remember and celebrate the cyclists Brandie Bailey, Rasha Shamoon, Brad Will and their community.

A garbage truck hit Bailey on Houston St. at Ave. A in 2005. Cyclists stopped first at her white "ghost" bike memorial, in order to celebrate the lives of all people killed on this dangerous street. After a moving speech that ended with, "let's celebrate the dead and fight like hell for the living," cyclists cheered and danced to Mexican music performed by former Blood, Sweat and Tears trumpet player Lew Soloff.

Next cyclists rode to where Shamoon was struck by an SUV at Delancey and Bowery on August 11, 2008. They held a 'mock" funeral in the divider of the intersection. Then they theatrically "died" and were "buried" under the wheels of a parked taxi in the Allen Street bike lane, demonstrating the danger caused by motorists parked in the bike lanes.

The final celebration for the dead on the bike ride occurred at a community garden, where Will dedicated much of his activist effort when he wasn't promoting bike riding. Cyclists ended their ride at St. Marks Church, filled with renewed energy to continue their fight for safe streets for all present and future cyclists.

They asked Mayor Bloomberg to join them in the quest for safer streets for all the New Yorkers, who are often eager to get on their bikes, but discouraged by unprotected, un-enforced bike lanes. They called for the city to honor its commitment to making the roads bike-friendly and green.

There are more photos like the one above on the Time's Up! Flickr page.

Survey finds that NYC cyclists are becoming better at abiding by the rules of the road

[Random bike photo by Derek Berg]

NYC cyclists are becoming more considerate and law-abiding, according to research conducted by Peter Tuckel and William Milczarski of Hunter College at the City University of New York.

The study, "Bike Lanes + Bike Share = Bike Safety," looked at the behavior of 4,316 bicyclists at 98 different locations in central and lower Manhattan. (The researchers also compared this survey to a similar one from 2009.)

The new survey results showed that 34 percent of riders were observed going through red lights without pausing or stopping, down about 10 percentage points from 2009. In addition, 4.2 percent of cyclists were seen by the research team riding against traffic … while 3.2 percent were riding against traffic in the bike lane. This combined total of 7.4 percent is down nearly 6 percentage points from 2009. The survey also found that more women are riding bikes than in 2009.

Other survey results include:

• Helmet use rose from 29.9 percent in 2009 to 49.8 percent in 2013.
• Citi Bike riders in general are more compliant with traffic laws and ride in bike lanes at a higher rate than other riders.

As for Citi Bike, the study concludes: "Predictions that the launch of the bike-share program would lead to a spike in the number of cycling-related injuries have not materialized. Citi Bike riders appear to be more cautious and even more compliant with traffic rules than other cyclists."

You can find the whole academic jargony survey below...

Cycling Study January 2014

Other media outlets covered this survey, including Atlantic Cities, Gothamist and Streetsblog.