Can New York City kickstart bicycle revolution with bold plan

The world needs to make room for bicycles and other people-centered transportation options, and it needs to happen now not tomorrow, and not next year. Cities need more cyclists to meet climate targets, ease congestion, cut pollution, and, let’s just say because they are fabulous and make urban life just a bit better.

Even the United Nations is getting in on the act passing a resolution urging countries to promote bicycle use to combat the climate crisis.

If there is one city in North America that could be a serious catalyst for change akin to what we are now seeing in Europe, it is New York City. And a new proposal is just the thing.

New York City Council, in its Budget Response issued April 1, is pushing for its city to join the ranks of a number of European locales that are radically rethinking transportation by putting automobiles at the back of the line and advancing people-centered options such as bicycles and public transit. The question is, does it stand a chance of approval?

This week, in response to Mayor Eric Adams’s recent budget and the NYC Streets Plan, the New York City Council is asking for more, much more. We are talking 500 miles of protected bike lanes ensuring every single resident is within a quarter-mile of one, and the same goes for dedicated busways. The $3.1 billion ask even carves out a whopping 38 million square feet of public space for new mini-parks and plazas.

This is a plan that could revolutionize how people get around New York City bringing with it overdo transportation equity. And that’s something Transportation Alternatives executive director Danny Harris supports.

“The NYC Streets Plan is key to achieving transportation equity. The Streets Plan is how New York City will ensure faster commutes, fewer transit deserts, and greater economic opportunity in communities across the five boroughs,” Harris said.

“We are particularly excited that this funding will go toward ensuring that all New Yorkers live within a quarter-mile of a protected bike lane and a quarter-mile of a dedicated bus lane — goals shared in our NYC 25×25 vision. Investing in these projects will particularly support under-resourced communities that for too long have been left behind when it comes to building safe, accessible, and healthy streets. For the sake of our climate and so much more, New Yorkers need the benefits of the Streets Plan to have reliable and affordable options that allow them to shift their trips currently completed in cars.”

The NYC Streets Plan was released at the end of 2021 and already includes some solid benchmarks for bike infrastructure and other public space measures including 250 miles of protected bike lanes by 2026 and the creation of a million square feet of pedestrian space. This new move would see that plan amped up and advanced much more quickly and with a much larger price tag.