Mayor Eric Adams is facing backlash over his decision to remove a protected bike lane segment on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn. A three-block stretch is set to be removed by the end ofthis month due to safety concerns raised by local residents. This announcement follows incidents involving the bike lane, including one where a child stepped between parked cars into the path of an oncoming cyclist, as reported by CBS News.
Despite the intention to improve safety, there is a push to rather redesign the problematic section to better address resident complaints. The mayor's office stated, "After several incidents — including some involving children — on a section of the Bedford Avenue bike lane in Williamsburg, Department of Transportation Commissioner [Ydanis] Rodriguez and I listened to community concerns and decided to adjust the current design to better reflect community feedback," according to an announcement captured by Gothamist. A local community member, Joel Blaustein, expressed relief over the decision, seeing it as a means to protect children on their way to and from school buses.
The protective barriers were initially installed as part of a redesign by Adams' transportation department, aiming to safeguard cyclists from the hectic traffic conditions leading up to Flushing Avenue. However, members of the Hasidic community in the Williamsburg neighborhood, where the bike lane is located, have actively opposed the protected lane, citing safety concerns for their children. This pushback was manifested in an online petition titled "DOT: Please Stop the Murder of our Children," which has garnered over 3,000 signatures since its inception, as per Gothamist.
City Council Member Lincoln Restler, however, has criticized the mayor's decision. He believes that safety decisions should not be politically motivated, suggesting that the removal of the protected lane will actually increase danger for cyclists and pedestrians alike. "We needed to do more to slow down cyclists. We needed to do more to engage families and children about how to safely cross a protected bike lane," Restler told CBS News.
While safety is paramount, cyclists like Tom Murray would prefer to see a different solution, highlighting the transportation challenges in the city: "The public transport in this city is so bad already. Why take away one of the only ways that people can get around apart from a car?" Murray questioned in an interview with CBS News.
The bike lane on Bedford Avenue remains under review by city officials, who are evaluating how to address both community feedback and the needs of cyclists. As discussions continue, the focus is on identifying a street design that meets the requirements of all residents in the Brooklyn neighborhood.
