The protected bike lane on Queens Boulevard, between Yellowstone Boulevard and 73rd Street, in Forest Hills. The plastic bollards will soon be replaced by cement barrier (Photo: DOT)
Feb. 22, 2022 By Allie Griffin
Three protected bike lanes in Queens will be getting safety upgrades as part of an effort to better protect cyclists from cars throughout the city, the Department of Transportation announced Friday.
Bike lanes in Long Island City, Astoria and Forest Hills will be among the first lanes in the city to have their plastic bollards replaced with cement barriers through the initiative. Four Manhattan bike lanes are also scheduled for the first updates.
The three Queens lanes that will be hardened are Crescent Street from Queens Plaza North to Hoyt Avenue North in Long Island City and Astoria; Vernon Boulevard from 46th Avenue to 30th Road in Long Island City and Astoria; and Queens Boulevard from 73rd Street to Yellowstone Boulevard in Forest Hills.
The three Queens and four Manhattan protected bike lanes are the first lanes in the program. The DOT plans to harden a total 20 miles of the 40 existing miles of delineator-protected bike lanes in the city by the end of 2023. Existing plastic bollards currently separating bike lanes from car lanes will be removed and replaced with cement Jersey barriers that weigh several tons.
“New York City’s cyclists deserve to be safe everywhere, but especially in protected lanes – where drivers will too often disrespect and block that critical space,” DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said in a statement. “We have an actionable, concrete plan to protect cyclists and we are going to deliver on this work to keep our lanes clear.”
He thanked cycling and transportation advocates for helping identify the bike lanes in greatest need of better protection. The DOT chose lanes with high ridership, a history of cars blocking the bike lanes and/or lanes adjacent to heavy car traffic for the initiative.
The Crescent Street bike lane is one of three Queens protected bike lanes that will soon get new cement barriers. In this photo a USPS van is blocking the lane (twitter)
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said the effort is a great step toward improving cyclists’ safety in the city.
“These enhanced safety measures will provide bicyclists with the solid protection they deserve and will help unclog our roads and reduce pollution by encouraging more people to travel by bicycle,” Richards said in a statement. “I look forward to seeing the hardening of the bike lines at three high-volume locations in Queens in the coming weeks.”
Queens Assembly Member Andrew Hevesi also applauded the DOT’s plan, noting its need in his district that covers Forest Hills.
“I am glad to hear that hardened protected bike lanes are finally coming to Queens Boulevard!” Hevesi said. “New Yorkers deserve safe streets in which they can traverse without fear of needless tragedy.”
The effort coincides with the department’s commitment to build new protected bike lanes throughout the city. The DOT is testing several alternatives to plastic bollards for future lanes, including rubber and concrete barriers as well as curb designs that separate bike lanes from car lanes without requiring large-scale installations.
Queens Council Member Shekar Krishnan and Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Danny Harris both said the new protection features will save lives.
DOT crews installing new cement barriers along a protected bike lane in Manhattan (DOT)
“New Yorkers are walking more and bike ridership has increased in recent years, and our city needs to be more accessible and safer for those not behind the wheel,” Krishnan said. “We must improve our infrastructure to protect bikers and pedestrians across the Five Boroughs.”
Harris said the cement barriers offer actual protection that is sorely needed for the city’s cyclists.
“Real protection, not just plastic or paint, is needed to keep people riding bikes safe,” he said in a statement Friday. “Today’s announcement by Commissioner Rodriguez to upgrade 20 miles of plastic-marked bike lanes will save lives,”
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9 Comments
Complete disaster. More bike selfishness.
Meanwhile when Crescent Street is all backed up I’ve seen police going to emergencies thru there and ambulances using it to get to hospital…Crescent Street is a disaster and we were led to believe it was still negotiatable
When Are the bicyclists going to start paying their fair share of the cost of all these changes. The road tax is collected at the gas pump. Bicyclists must be made to pay.
Where there is only one traffic lane, installing these permanent barriers will prevent vehicles from going around double parked trucks unloading or other inconsiderate motorists. Bad idea. I speak as a bicyclist who uses these lanes regularly.
The Crescent Street bike lane by the hospital is a hot mess. maybe the concrete barriers will slow down the speeding bikes.
Along Crescent St there are lots of commercial driveways that of course won’t be protected by concrete barriers. Trucks will just pull into those openings and sit, completely blocking the bike lane for hours on end just like they do today and everyday. Unfortunately there is no way around it as far as I can tell.
What would make the bike lanes safer than the concrete barriers would be to ban the high speed e-bikes/e-scooters/gas-scooters from the relatively slow moving bike lanes.
What’s being done to protect pedestrians and drivers who are put at risk by bikers ignoring red lights, stop signs and riding on sidewalks?
Seems like all the emphasis is on the bikers and none on pedestrians!
How exactly are drivers sitting behind two tons of steel put at risk by cyclists? ?
Imagine what can happen if a driver has to swerve to not to hit a red-light-stop sign-skipping-delivery-bike. Need more red meat, fish, eggs and less soy milk…