Repainting The Bike Lane On Bedford Avenue

New York City bicyclists repaint 14 blocks of bike lane on Bedford Avenue.




The Take Back Our Bike Lanes Campaign is a coalition of bike commuting citizens unaffiliated with any established organization who came together to challenge the sudden removal last week of the bike lane on Bedford Avenue between Flushing and Division in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.




We want to clarify misrepresentations in the press that the conflict about the Bedford Avenue bike lane is between the Hasidic and hipster communities in Brooklyn. It is not. The real conflict is between the citizens of the City more broadly and certain corrupt government officials.

The Bedford Avenue bike lane has provided safety for bike commuters en route to the Williamsburg Bridge. Although New York law gives bicyclists the right to ride on City streets regardless of whether there is a bike lane, the DOTs unannounced removal of this bike lane has endangered those who use Bedford Avenue as the main artery between their own neighborhoods and the Williamsburg Bridge. The affected neighborhoods include Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights, and Flatbush - some of the poorest areas of the City.

The Citys removal of the bike lane resulted from a quid pro quo between certain religious leaders and the Bloomberg administration. Without consulting the community at large, Bloomberg sacrificed the safety of bike riders in the name of appeasing a special interest group. His back-door deal, made in the run-up to the mayoral election, sacrificed the safety of citizens who cannot afford the Mayors ear at the altar of political expediency and favoritism. That represents the worst kind of hypocrisy and cynicism.

We support the recent repainting of the Bedford Avenue bike lane and call on Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes to decline to prosecute potential criminal charges arising from it.
We demand that the city government consult the greater citizenry through approval of local community boards and the holding of public hearings in all affected communities whenever there is a proposal to remove a bike lane in the future.
We also call upon all citizens to join environmental advocacy group Times Up! on Sunday for a New Orleans-style funeral group ride down Bedford Avenue starting at 2 pm at 99 South 6th Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Bike
• Lane
• bike lane
• bedford
• williamsburg
• paint
• repaint
• brooklyn
• new york
• south williamsburg
• bicycle
• bicycle lane
• bicyclist
• cyclist
• cyclists
• avenue
• street
• division
• flushing
• DIY
• NY
• NYC
• spray

[CEEAat]

Supported by Lance Armstrong. :)

[mtanyc]

This area is run by hasidic jews and has been for about 70 years, they HATE bike riders and anyone who is not Jewish.

[hoodun]

following this link from a 1.5 yrear old article about hipsters vs hasidics... first, I have nothing against the hacidics, I personally like how they dress and respect their beliefs. though, they CANNOT be allowed to push their personal beliefs out into public areas of the city!!!

nice work on repainting the lanes. if you think bike lanes do not make a difference, you are ignorant. its a FACT that the lanes create more awareness of where concentrated bicyclists are.

[Pateraaaack]

FUCK YEAH BIKE LANES

[PhantomLord]

@johnnybagofdonets 9months later that didn't happen

[queensplazasouth]

big deal lines on the street mean nothing ESPECIALLY to cyclists.

[MondoBeno]

I bike 10 miles to get to work because I have no choice. The subway's no longer reliable, the fares are getting higher, and I'm not wasting my money on a car. So how else are we supposed to get to work?

They call us a "menace to the city" but it's the idiots who stand in the street that are the problem.

[TimeForParadigmShift]

Whoever you dudes are that repainted these lanes. One word. RESPECT.

[joshuaoha]

Nice.

[andrewfyip]

I heard they took away this bike lane because of complaints of less parking and bad for businesses by the businesses in the area. I will make sure not to visit that area/shop there when I visit New York this year.

[lukew643]

I use bedford ave, i bike from beford and beverley down in flatbush to the williamsburg bridge. yesterday I got yelled at by a dude in a minivan up where the lane officially ends. He told me not only was there no bike lane, but that I had no right to be ON THE ROAD AT ALL. thanks for repainting guys!