When: Friday, September 12th, riders pass at 7 pm
Where: South side of Queens Boulevard at 50th Street, Sunnyside, Queens,
Who: Several dozen bicyclists biking home on Queens Boulevard together, photo and interview opportunities

The campaign for a safer Queens Boulevard will host its first monthly "Bike Commuter Pool" today. On the second Friday of every month, Transportation Alternatives will lead an escorted bike ride along Queens Boulevard from the Queensboro Bridge to Elmhurst, providing riders with a safe group in which to get home. The rides are part of Zero on Queens Boulevard, a campaign to eliminate traffic fatalities on Queens Boulevard through pedestrian safety improvements and a protected bicycle lane along the service roadways.

Despite the dangers of biking on Queens Boulevard, thousands of riders are compelled to use it each day because so few parallel routes exist, and because it links so many of the borough’s neighborhoods and transit hubs together. Transportation Alternatives is campaigning with Queens Council Members Jim Gennaro, John Liu and Eric Gioia for a safer Queens Boulevard. Council Member Tony Avella has also indicated his support for a protected bicycle lane.

"There is safety in numbers for the thousands of bicyclists who bike on Queens Boulevard each day," says Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives. "Biking home together will give a measure of protection until we win a fully-protected bike lane."

The monthly Bike Commuter Pool will take place on the second Friday of every month.

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