Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Bicycling

Community-Based Bike Advocacy in Chinatown and the Lower East Side

Local Spokes is a coalition of nine organizations that joined up to engage low-income residents, people of color, immigrants, and young people in the Lower East Side and Chinatown to envision the future of bicycling in their communities. To understand the transportation needs of the neighborhoods, Local Spokes conducted an extensive survey in 2010 and 2011 and held a series of workshops in Chinese, English, and Spanish.

Last summer Local Spokes synthesized everything the coalition had gathered from this process into a neighborhood action plan for bicycling [PDF]. The goal of the action plan is to ensure that residents of the Lower East Side and Chinatown will have a role in decisions about bike-related policies and initiatives for their streets, and to create a model for community-based bike plans in other neighborhoods.

Streetfilms teamed up with Local Spokes in 2012 to document their work, and in this video you can see them in action.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

State of the State Exclusive: Hochul Will Push ‘Stop Super Speeders’ Bill Through Her Budget

City motorists with a documented pattern of excessive speeding would be required to install speed-limiting devices inside their cars, Gov. Hochul is expected to announce today.

January 13, 2026

Westward Ho! Hochul Proposes to Extend Second Ave. Subway Along 125th Street to Broadway

The westward crosstown extension will connect what is now the Q train to seven different subway lines.

January 13, 2026

Delivery Apps Have Stolen $550M From Workers By Changing How Customers Tip: Mamdani Admin. Report

The average tip on UberEats and DoorDash is just 76¢ per delivery — compared to $2.17 on apps that offer the option to tip before checkout.

January 13, 2026

NJ Pols Want Registration Of Low-Speed E-Bikes, Despite Driver Mayhem

A restrictive e-bike registration bill is one step closer to becoming law in the Garden State.

January 13, 2026

Go ACE! Bus Stops Are Clearer Than Ever Thanks To MTA’s Bus-Mounted Camera Enforcement

Automated cameras are clearing up bus stops across the city.

January 13, 2026

Tuesday’s Headlines: It’s a Tracker Edition

Check it out: We're tracking if Mayor Mamdani will delivery where Mayor Eric Adams failed. Plus other news.

January 13, 2026
See all posts