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TourdeBronx.org
Register online to participate in New York's largest free cycling event, the Tour de Bronx!
T.A. In the News Latest
T.A. News Time on your hands? Eager to
make a difference? T.A. needs folks who are retired, work part-time or
between jobs to help our top-notch advocacy staff make the city a better place for bicyclists,
pedestrians and transit riders. Valet Bike Parking Volunteers Needed Volunteer to provide valet bike parking at events throughout the year. Register online to express your interest in this opportunity. T.A. still has two open internships:
- Advocacy
(work with T.A. program staff) Please visit transalt.org/intern for more information. Donations Wish List Help cycling and walking and get a tax deduction. Donate to T.A. We need: -Pentium II or better
PCs Contact Matt: info@transalt.org
Do Your Part for Safer Streets! Report: Potholes
and Hazards: Sidewalk
obstructions: Mayor’s Quality of Life Hotline at 888-677-LIFE/
Read more about T.A.'s work to reduce street hazards at transalt.org/haz Report Dangerous Cabs: 212-221-TAXI or report them online.
Read more about T.A.'s work to make cabs safer for pedestrians and cyclists at transalt.org/cabs The T.A. Bulletin is a bi-weekly publication of Transportation Alternatives. The Bulletin has 31,000 subscribers. Transportation Alternatives is a 5,000-member NYC-area non-profit citizens group working for better bicycling, walking and public transit, and fewer cars. We work for safer, calmer neighborhood streets and car-free parks. Join T.A. today!
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What could make bicycling a viable option for millions of New Yorkers? Int. 155, the omnibus indoor bike parking bill!
New
York City has the worst (or best) bike thieves in the country. T.A. estimates
that some 60-80,000 bikes are stolen each year, and according to the NYPD, fewer
than 2% of them are recovered. Given that sobering statistic, it is no surprise that,
according to the NYC Department of City Planning,
Last year, City Councilmember David Yassky introduced a bill that would allow tenants to bring their bicycles into the buildings where they work and live. The bill has been awaiting review by the City Council's Housing and Buildings Committee, and on September 26 Councilmember Madeline Provenzano, the committee’s chair, told Newsday that "she would like to hold a hearing on the proposal."
Name:
Please include your full contact information so that your message will be treated as official correspondence! Your message will be sent to Councilmember Provenzano and e-mailed to Transportation Alternatives. If your e-mail program does not support forms, please visit this page online: www.transalt.org/press/askta/041019.html
On Wednesday morning, two young brothers were struck by drivers near PS 103 in the Bronx. Quron Bryant, 6 and Daquan Bryant, 9, were crossing the street to PS 103 on Carpenter Avenue when they were hit by a driver, leaving them each with a shattered leg, cuts and bruises.
Traffic
calming, not crossing guards, is the most effective weapon against reckless
drivers. Unlike crossing guards, who sometimes need to take a day off because
Thanks to a special request from T.A.'s former executive director made last summer to the DOT's Manhattan Borough Commissioner, the steep and decrepit stretch of Riverside Drive between 96th Street and 116th Street has at last been repaved. This is good news to the thousands of commuter and recreational cyclists who use this popular route on Manhattan's Upper West Side to connect to the George Washington Bridge, the Hudson River Greenway and neighborhood streets.
In letters and phone calls
dating back to the mid-1990s, cyclists regularly complained to the DOT about
Riverside Drive's dangerous potholes, wheel catching gouges, deep cracks and
eroded pavement. But the agency's car-borne inspectors said they found no need
to expedite repaving; instead DOT crudely and haphazardly patched only the largest potholes which
did little to make the street safer for cyclists. Only when the DOT's Manhattan
Borough
Commissioner inspected the problem in
A key step towards promoting cycling in New York City is ensuring that officially recommended cycling routes, like Riverside Drive, are well maintained and safe. Achieving this will require: 1. More frequent inspections and an accelerated repair and repaving schedule for designated bicycle routes, whether marked with a sign or striped with a lane. 2. A much stronger consideration of cycling safety when DOT street inspectors check for hazards. Putting some inspectors on bicycles--which DOT did in the early 1990s--would help.
Maintaining Bike Lanes If New York City is going to have bike lanes then New York City needs to maintain these bike lanes. The bike lane on Caton Avenue in Brooklyn needs to be re-marked. This is a heavily traveled street and the bike lane has disappeared. Even though there are "Bicycle Only" signs there is no longer a defined bike lane!
Also, please press the DOT to issue tickets to drivers that use these bike lanes to double park. I would like to know exactly how many tickets have been given out to vehicles for obstructing a bike lane, or is that not an option when writing tickets? William B. T.A. Response: William, thanks for your e-mail.T.A. routinely calls on the DOT to make bike lane maintenance more frequent. See transalt.org/campaigns/bike/streethazards.html for full details.We strongly suggest that you also urge the DOT to improve its bike lane maintenance. (They hear it all the time from T.A. and often respond faster to citizen complaints.) Commissioner Iris Weinshall Regarding parking in the bike lane, enforcement is under the purview of the NYPD. You can look up your local precinct at www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/pct/pbbspct.html and urge it to increase enforcement.
A question regarding the bike lane on the northbound side of Central Park West in Manhattan. Do you know if this is meant for two way traffic? Lisa T.A. Response: Lisa, the Central Park West bike lane is for one-way northbound bicycle traffic only. Bicyclists must follow all of same rules as motorists, including riding with traffic, unless otherwise posted.
Hi, T.A. I wonder if there's any ongoing talk about the Manhattan Bridge access. The designated route on the Manhattan side, a long trip through heavily traveled streets in Chinatown, seems ridiculous. Is there any way to get them to consider some simpler route, even if against traffic around Canal? Who can I contact regarding this matter? Thanks, Karen C. T.A. Response: Karen, thanks for your note. We are also concerned about Manhattan Bridge access. We have done considerable
work and continue to work on making both sides of the Manhattan Bridge safer and
easier to bike and walk to and from. See
www.transalt.org/bridges/manhattan.html
for full details and
transalt.org/press/magazine/043Summer/ You should also contact the Department of Transportation and urge the agency to make access safer along Canal Street. Writing takes about five minutes and makes a big difference. Commissioner Iris Weinshall Email: www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/maildot.html [an error occurred while processing this directive] Take Action
Valet parking/greeters: 6-9 pm Setup: 4-7 pm Breakdown: 8:30-10 pm Please e-mail info@transalt.org and let us know what you would like to do and when you will be available.
T.A. has many volunteer opportunities. Please visit our site to learn more about how you can help. Come to the Volunteer Mailing Party on Wednesday, October 27th at 6 pm at the T.A. Office (115 West 30th, #1207)! Free beer, soda, snacks and scintillating conversation. Advocacy Committees Brooklyn@transalt.org Centralpark@transalt.org Gowanus@transalt.org Citywide:
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Dear Reader, Soon the City of New York will make a decision about the future of vehicular traffic on Central Park’s loop drive. It’s a watershed decision. Will we continue to sacrifice the well-being of the many for the convenience of a comparatively few motorists? The fate of Central Park matters enormously, particularly to the majority of New Yorkers who have too few chances to enjoy clean air, quiet and safe open space. Before you make your national voice heard at the polls on November 2, make your local voice heard at the Rally for a Car-Free Central Park on October 26. The future of our great City hangs in the balance. Sincerely,
Volunteer opportunities at the Car-free Central Park Rally (160 Central Park West at 76th St.) Valet parking/ Setup: 4-7 pm, Tue., Oct. 26 Breakdown: 8:30-10 pm, Tue., Oct. 26 Please e-mail info@transalt.org and let us know what you would like to do and when you will be available. Come to the Volunteer Magazine Mailing Party, Wednesday, October 27th at 6 pm at the T.A. Office (115 West 30th, #1207)! Free beer, soda, snacks and scintillating conversation.
Join T.A.
today to start receiving Transportation
Alternatives Magazine, our members-only in-depth quarterly
magazine— Selected articles
"Safety in Numbers" Redefines Road Safety
Bike Lanes Coming to Park Slope's 5th Ave
TA Fights for More Safety, Less Harassment
Restoring Vital Habitat: NYC Kids Need Car-Free Parks, Playgrounds and Side Streets
The Just Desserts of DOT's Piecemeal Policy
Governor Pataki's Low Capital Crime: Will He Commit it Again? TAKE
THE TOUR!
POTHOLES, STREET HAZARDS GOT YOU IN A RUT? Call DOT at 212-225-5368 and hit 0 to skip the message and speak with a
human. You can also report them online at transalt.org/ STAY SMART & INFORMED Savvy
transit riders get their lowdown on the subways here: Sensible
Transport Junkies:  The daily Gotham Gazette: gothamgazette .org NYC News summaries and savvy commentary. Bikes
in Bogota? Car-Free Cartagena? Tel-Aviv by Train?
Give on-line at transalt.org/join Quick!
What's your city council GET THERE!
Check our maps page for links to NYC-area bicycle and transit maps. RIDES AND WALKS Thursday, October 21, 10 am. TBA. Loeb Boathouse. The Weekday Cyclists in NYC. Saturday, October 23, 8:30 am. Spinning Up the Hills. Grand Central Terminal, or 9:45 am, Croton-Harmon station. 5BBC. Saturday, October 23, 9:30 am. Kensico Reservoir. Grand Central Terminal upper level info booth. Shorewalkers. Saturday, October 23, 10 am. Architectural Tour: The Wright Ride. Plaza Hotel. 5BBC. Saturday, October 23, 10:30 am. Boulevard East and Bergenline Avenue, New Jersey. Boulevard East at Liberty Place ferry steps. Shorewalkers. Sunday, October 24. Tour de Bronx. Transportation Alternatives and the Bronx Borough President's Office. Sunday, October 24th, 8am-11am. Brooklyn Waterfront Bicycle Tour. The Steps of Borough Hall (Court and Joralemon St) The tour is canceled if it is raining at 7:30am. The Dredgers. Sunday, October 24, 8:30 am. Cold Spring-West Point. Information Kiosk on the main concourse of Grand Central Terminal. Fast & Fabulous. Sunday, October 24, 9 am. Hudson River Museum. Plaza Hotel. 5BBC. Sunday, October 24, 11 am. East River Saunter. John Finley Walk, Carl Schurz Park. Shorewalkers. Sunday, October 24, 11 am. Peanut Leap with Skunk Hollow. State Line Lookout. Shorewalkers. Tuesday, October 26, 10 am. TBA. Loeb Boathouse. The Weekday Cyclists in NYC. Thursday, October 28, 10 am. TBA. Loeb Boathouse. The Weekday Cyclists in NYC. Friday, October 29, 7 pm. Critical Mass. Union Square North. Time's Up! Saturday, October 30, 8:45am. When You See A Fork in the Road, Pick It Up. AYH. 5BBC. Saturday, October 30, 9 am. Westchester County Trailways. Van Cortlandt Park, 242nd Street and Broadway. 5BBC. Saturday, October 30, 9:30 am. Jersey Shore on the Hudson. Restaurant opposite Hoboken PATH terminal. Shorewalkers. Saturday, October 30, 10 pm. Riverside Ride. Columbus Circle entrance to Central Park. Time's Up! Sunday, October 31, 9 am. Cemetery Ride. Bridgemarket. 5BBC. Sunday, October 31, 9 am. Four Borough Bike Ride. City Hall. 5BBC. Sunday, October 31, 10:15 am. Astoria all day walk. Ditmars Boulevard station, downstairs. Shorewalkers. Sunday, October 31, 4:30 pm. Halloween Hike. Kearney House near Englewood Dock. Shorewalkers. |
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Int.
155: The Ultimate Inside Job 
the lack of secure bike
parking--not unsafe streets--is the number one barrier to New Yorkers who want
to bike to work but do not. 
If passed, the indoor bike
parking bill (Int. 155) would no doubt lead many more New Yorkers to bike to
work on a regular basis. A large increase in daily bicycling would improve
street safety for everyone and change the way New York City's streets feel, sound and
look. 
Open the
door to a massive increase in bike riding in New York City. E-mail
Councilmember Provenzano and ask her to schedule a committee hearing on the
indoor bike parking bill and urge her to support this very important piece of
legislation. Use the easy form below.
If your
e-mail program does not support forms, simply visit this page online:
Read more about on
The
majority of the press coverage on the issue has blamed the local crossing guard
for failing to show up that morning. But the reality is that little Quron and
Daquan are the latest tragic evidence that the City Department of
Transportation--not a lone crossing guard--is the real no-show. Only a small
fraction of New York City schools have the traffic calming they need to protect their
children. 
of
a sudden health problem or a family emergency, traffic calming measures such as
raised crosswalks and raised intersections that slow drivers down are on duty
all day, every day. According to the Office of Community Oriented Policing
Services at the United States Department of Justice, without traffic measures,
it is difficult for police to reduce average vehicle speeds below 25 mph.
Traffic calming will help the NYPD, of which crossing guards are a part, curb
reckless drivers by providing additional 24/7 enforcement. 
Transportation
Alternatives has just released an updated version of
If
you live within New York City or are a T.A. member living anywhere in the world,
we will send you a free copy. If you are not a T.A. member and live outside of
New York City, you may purchase a copy for $15 (including shipping). To obtain a
copy, please call Transportation Alternatives at 212-629-8080 or e-mail
The
bad news is that it took a special high level
appeal from T.A. to get the DOT
to fix blatantly dangerous conditions on a heavily used and officially
designated cycling route. 
person, at T.A.'s special request, was
action forthcoming. 
Please
press the City DOT to inspect the city's bike lanes. If taxpayers' money is
going to pay for these bike lanes then they should be maintained. 
Central
Park West Bike Lane 
Manhattan
Bridge Access 
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