In Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, a steady stream of trucks, cars, buses and ambulances travel along McDonald Avenue every day.
Now, neighbors are growing concerned that New York City’s plan to redesign the busy four-lane corridor with bike lanes will create new dangers.
“We have two hospitals within one mile radius and four elementary schools,” said Lisa Sposato, a Windsor Terrace resident. “So congestion and schools and hospitals don’t mix very well.”
Transit officials, however, say their plan is the safer option.
“We are pro-bikes. We just think this is a really bad idea.”
Residents recently learned of the Department of Transportation’s plan to add bike lanes to a five-block stretch of McDonald Avenue along Green Wood Cemetery, connecting the existing bike routes on Fort Hamilton Parkway and 20th Street.
Under the city’s proposal, the four-lane road would be reduced to two to put bike lanes in each direction.
“We are pro-bikes,” Sposato said. “We just think this is a really bad idea. There are several side streets that you could take the bikes down that would make a longer path.”
New bike lanes on McDonald Avenue in Brooklyn would connect the existing bike routes on Fort Hamilton Parkway and 20th Street.
CBS News New York
The stretch in question also serves as part of Commercial Truck Route 27, which raised additional concerns among the locals.
“We have four schools in a nine-block radius,” said Susan Reilly, another Windsor Terrace resident.
Reilly and others said the redesign could cause more traffic jams, especially during school drop-off hours.
“A lot of children are using school buses, a lot of children have to use the MTA buses in order to get to school,” Reilly said.
“There’s seven MTA routes, including express buses that run and move 25-30,000 people a day,” said Alexandra Lambert, another neighbor. “That’s a really vital transportation line. And when it gets backed up, the kids are just late to school and people are late to work.”
“Putting in a protected bike lane on a truck route is actually best practices”
In response to the residents’ concerns, a DOT spokesperson said street redesigns like the McDonald Avenue plan have been shown to reduce injuries and deaths by as much as 30%.
“This project will help reduce instances of dangerous driving while expanding the neighborhood’s protected bike network,” DOT said in a statement.
Alexa Sledge, communications director for Transportation Alternatives, supports the project and said it aligns with a common DOT approach to safety redesign.
“Putting in a protected bike lane on a truck route is actually best practices for turning a truck route into a safe street,” she said.
Neighbors proposed an alternate plan to reroute cyclists through nearby residential streets. They said their plan would be safer and prevent street congestion.
“That gets you 1.72 miles of bicycle lanes versus the .5 here,” said Troy Martin, also of Windsor Terrace. “And it’s much safer.”
DOT officials said they plan to conduct additional outreach and consider community feedback before moving forward with the McDonald Avenue redesign.
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