An NYC First: On-Street Parking Spaces Replaced by Bike Racks

10:48 AM EDT on July 12, 2007

The new bike racks have been installed at the Bedford Avenue L subway station in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. As the Dept. of Transportation announces in today's press release, "The
facility marks the first time car parking spaces have been removed to
accommodate bicycle parking in New York City."

DOT extended a 76-foot section of the sidewalk by five feet and
installed nine new bike racks to provide parking for more than 30
bikes. Demand for bicycle parking is high in the area around the
Bedford Avenue subway stop and it has been the scene of frequent NYPD bike seizures.

Livable Streets advocates take careful note of the work that Community Board member Teresa Toro and DOT Deputy Borough Commissioner Dalila Hall did to push this project through. It's not easy to make change in New York City. This is how you do it.

Here's the money quote in today's Daily News:

"It's superconvenient," said Matthew Holtberg, 34, a graphicdesigner from Fort Greene, after unlocking his set of wheels yesterday.
But tow truck driver Luis Padilla, 46, was ticked off that threeparking spots for drivers were removed for a bike port. He came to pickup a relative from the station and couldn't find a legal spot. Heworried about getting a summons.
"I could have parked away from the hydrant and now I'm right in front of it," he fumed.

Previous Coverage:

NYPD Stealing Bikes (Again) in Williamsburg, 11/10/05
Wider Sidewalks and Bicycle Park-and-Ride for Williamsburg, 12/18/06
StreetFilms: On-Street Bike Parking in Portland, 12/20/06
Small Step for Peds & Cyclists, Giant Leap for NYC, 12/22/06
A Historic Sidewalk Widening in Williamsburg, 6/8/07
94th Precinct (Still) Clipping Locks & Seizing Bikes on Bedford Ave., 6/28/07

Aaron Naparstek

AARON NAPARSTEK is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparsteks journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. Naparstek is the author of "Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage" (Villard, 2003), a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the endless motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Prior to launching Streetsblog, Naparstek worked as an interactive media producer, pioneering some of the Web's first music web sites, online communities, live webcasts and social networking services. Naparstek is currently in Cambridge with his wife and two young sons where he is enjoying a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. He has a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Naparstek is a co-founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and the Grand Army Plaza Coalition. You can find more of his work here: http://www.naparstek.com.

Stay in touch

More from Streetsblog New York City

Streetsblog USA Year In Review

Streetsblog Year in Review: The Biggest Sustainable Transport News of 2024

It was a busy year in the movement to end car dependency — and there's a lot more to come.

December 23, 2024

Police Misconduct

Astoria to NYPD: Stop These Excessive Police Chases

The NYPD's 114th Precinct must eliminate "unnecessary" police chases through mostly residential Astoria because they have "dramatically reduced" public safety with very little upside, a Queens community board said last week.