Work Begins To Improve Brooklyn Bridge Bike Lane

A Streetsblog NYC article details the New York City Department of Transportation’s efforts to improve the highly anticipated Brooklyn Bridge bike lane, which disappointed some bike advocates when it opened last year. 

“Currently, the stretch of Centre Street north of Worth Street is what cyclists call ‘The Sluice’ because it resembles an entry path into an abattoir. Both curbside lanes of the roadway are occupied with placarded court and law enforcement cars.” According to the article, “The slaughterhouse conditions continue northbound on Centre Street to Canal Street. But the roadway definitely does not get safe above Canal. Yes, there is less double parking, but frustrated drivers tend to speed above Canal, where Centre opens up to two wide, rarely obstructed lanes.” Due to these conditions, “Since January 2017, there have been 64 reported crashes on just the two-block stretch of Centre Street between Canal and Grand streets, injuring eight cyclists, three pedestrians and two motorists.”

Now, “Work is under way to extend the Brooklyn Bridge protected bike lane on Centre Street north of Worth Street all the way to Kenmare Square and add a downtown-bound protected bike lane on Lafayette Street south of Kenmare Square, which currently has a painted lane.” Additionally, “The city will cut the motor vehicle lanes on Centre Street from two down to one in the section between Worth and Canal, and had previously said it would install pedestrian island[s] at every intersection along the way (some of those have already been blocked out).”

The plan doesn’t address every issue: “The only thing missing from this gap-closing plan is a better solution for cyclists who want to ride between the Brooklyn Bridge bike path and points west, including the hugely popular Hudson River Greenway.”