Bicycling

Eyes on the Street: The Columbus Avenue Bike Lane, Part Two

The Columbus Avenue protected bike lane won't be a disconnected stub much longer. DOT is striping extensions of the bike lane south from 77th Street and north from 96th Street this summer, following a supportive vote from Manhattan Community Board 7 in February. Streetsblog publisher Mark Gorton sent in this shot looking south from 76th Street this morning.

By Ben Fried

5:00 PM EDT on July 22, 2013

The Columbus Avenue protected bike lane won’t be a disconnected stub much longer. DOT is striping extensions of the bike lane south from 77th Street and north from 96th Street this summer, following a supportive vote from Manhattan Community Board 7 in February. Streetsblog publisher Mark Gorton sent in this shot looking south from 76th Street this morning.

This project will basically link the Columbus Avenue bike lane with the Ninth Avenue bike lane, though the plan calls for sharrows instead of a protected bike lane between 69th Street and Broadway. More than 20 blocks of Columbus are in line for the substantial pedestrian safety benefits seen along the existing Columbus Avenue segment — a 41 percent drop in injuries, according to DOT.

Neighborhood advocates fought long and hard to win this street safety improvement, repeatedly encountering resistance from the co-chairs of CB 7’s transportation committee. Next on the agenda for Upper West Side street safety: the transportation committee is meeting this Wednesday to discuss the future of other major avenues in the neighborhood.

Ben Fried

Ben Fried started as a Streetsblog reporter in 2008 and led the site as editor-in-chief from 2010 to 2018. He lives in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, with his wife.