New York City Council Pushing for Major Investments in Bus and Bike Lanes

"In the Council’s formal response to Mayor Eric Adams’s $98.5 billion city budget proposal from February, politicians called for more investments in the Big Apple’s social safety net and infrastructure, including a far more ambitious vision to reshape the streetscape," reports Kevin Duggan for amNY. In all, the council is asking for $3.1 billion toward the NYC Streets Plan.

According to an earlier article by Duggan, the New York City Department of Transportation unveiled the NYC Streets Plan in December 2021. The plan set several benchmarks for the amount of new bike- and bus-friendly paths the agency must build, as required by a law proposed and approved by the City Council in 2019.

"The goals — which come with minimum annual targets — include 150 miles of bus lanes and 250 miles of protected bike lanes by end of 2026, and 1 million square feet of pedestrian space by end of 2023," explains Duggan in the most recent article. The $3.1 billion requested by the City Council would push those goals much further, according to Duggan: "The Council now wants to earmark more money for at least 500 miles of new bus lanes and 500 miles of protected bike lanes."

Bus lanes have been a tough sell despite wide support in New York City. A plan proposed by former Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2020 to build 20 miles of bus lanes was slowly rescinded due to local opposition.