From the Queens Gazette:Community Board 1 officials and members of the Astoria Park Alliance were shocked last fall when they realized newly-installed lanes at the park were too narrow to accommodate bicyclists and people out for a stroll in the park.
The lanes were constructed as part of the $3.4 million Queens East River and North Shore Greenway designed to connect the shoreline from Newtown Creek in Long Island City to the Flushing Bay Promenade, but the shared Bicycle/Pedestrian lanes measure a measly 4-feet wide – far too narrow to accommodate those sharing the paths, CB1 officials said.
Community Board officials reached out to the city Department of Parks for resolution of the condition, saying the crowded lanes are sure to cause collisions between bicyclists and visitors to Astoria Park – and that the lanes have already become a problem for area residents who view the symbols as “an eyesore.”
CB1 Parks Committee chairperson Richard Khuzumii said the city Department of Transportation and the Parks Department responded to the board’s inquiry by submitting a three-point proposal listing changes slated for the lanes.
The proposal calls for removal of “redundant” Greenway signs in tight spaces and a focus on locations where the bike paths diverge from pedestrian areas, attaching metal reflectors on barrier fences where the paths run alongside lanes of traffic and creation of wider shared lanes by removing some markings that separate pedestrian and bicycle lanes.
Khuzumi said anyone experiencing problems or collisions between bicycles, pedestrians, motor vehicles, “or visual pollutants,” should call 311 to report the condition(s).
Actually, if you're in a collision, 911 might be more appropriate...
6 comments:
Parks + DOT = Incompetence
Doesn't anyone ever review the projects they oversee while in progress and re-evaluate, redesign, etc.?
Try pulling this shit in corporate America (as an actual worker, not high up the food chain) and you'd get your head handed to you.
So, basically, as soon as you get a NYC job you can do ultra-shitty work and never have to worry about the repercussions?
Bike lanes MUST be carefully designed. We see them used by old ladies walking their lap-dogs, little kids learning to roller skate (or just learning to walk!) and testosterone-fueled, lycra-wrapped bike-rockets.I also submit that these narrow lanes violate equal-access under the ADA: both my kids ridge adult tricycles (a la Florida retirees) because they cannot ride two-wheelers. The search for a place where I can take my kids riding with no fear of blood on the wheels is daunting!
CB1 merely rubberstamps outdoor cafes that clutter the sidewalk and appeal to the 2 /3 generation Greeks-Italians that live out on the island, and Vallone inspired development projects that have spawned their own website (Astoria Ugly) and, as in the case of Shore Towers, are used by design schools everywhere as what NOT to do.
Most of the people on the board are unknown to the community at large. Stuff like this are beyond their interest or capacity to manage.
The city would never dare pull crap like this in other communities but the inert nature of Astoria (beyond a few favored blocks near the Vallone residence) is legendary.
Millions get pissed away on Vallone whims (see Astoria Pool)
Does the bicycle lobby have that much power?
Rip 'em up!
Bike lanes have become bilk lanes...robbing us taxpayers of money needed for schools, hospitals, and emergency services.
They are the opium dream of a goof ball mayor and his equally doofy department heads.
This ain't Paris, your (dis)honor This is FUCKIN' New York City! Who germinated the idea for these pussy little bicycle lanes anyway?
Bloomberg...begone you to Boston, already!
Abdicate your throne, NOW!
The bike lanes are too narrow and people wander into them to walk and play. Something's gotta be done before someone gets serisouly hurt. And what should be done is not getting rid of bike lanes, but separating them out to protect bikes and pedestrians. Stupid design.
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