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

DOT Replaces a Block of the Fifth Avenue Bike Lane With Sharrows

Bye bye, bike lane. Hello, sharrows in a turn lane. Photo: Stephen Miller
Bye bye, bike lane. Hello, sharrows in a turn lane. Photo: Stephen Miller
Sharrows. Ugh. File photo: Stephen Miller

DOT's recent design tweaks to Eighth Street have come with an unwelcome change on Fifth Avenue. As the Fifth Avenue bike lane approaches Eighth Street, it now morphs into sharrows that overlap with a turning lane for motorists. The dedicated space for cycling is gone, and the new design is incompatible with the protected bike lane that advocates and the local community board have called for on Fifth Avenue.

While the southern end of Fifth Avenue doesn't carry much car traffic, as the street approaches its terminus at Washington Square Park, many drivers turn left onto eastbound Eighth Street. The left-side bike lane was sacrificed to make way for a new design to handle this turning traffic.

The intent of the design is to separate the turning motorists from people crossing Eighth Street, who now have "a split-phase leading pedestrian interval," giving them a head start before drivers receive a flashing yellow turn arrow. But it also calls for cyclists to do a non-intuitive merging movement around turning drivers, including many MTA buses and tour buses. Since bus drivers swing right before making tight left turns, the bike stencils direct cyclists to take a path that could conflict with the path of buses.

An earlier version of the plan, presented to Manhattan Community Board 2 last November, added the turn lane but kept the bike lane [PDF].

DOT says it will finish markings and signal work by the end of the month.

More than a year ago, DOT committed to studying protected bike lanes on Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in response to local elected officials and community boards, but hasn't produced anything since then.

This section of Fifth Avenue, with its low volume of traffic, would be an ideal location to begin building out protected lanes on these important north-south streets. With its corner sidewalk extensions, however, the new intersection design won't work with a protected bike lane:

5th_ave_8th_street
The new intersection design at Fifth Avenue and Eighth Street is incompatible with a protected bike lane on Fifth.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Foot Traffic Data Shows New Yorkers Aren’t Avoiding Manhattan After Congestion Pricing

City data shows that more people, not less, are coming into Manhattan since the launch of congestion pricing.

March 19, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines: Stand Your Ground Edition

MTA Chairman Janno Lieber still has no plans to turn off the congestion pricing cameras — to hell with Donald Trump. Plus more news.

March 19, 2025

Gridlock Sam: Trucks Aren’t Rerouting into the Bronx or Staten Island to Avoid Congestion Pricing

"So far, there's no evidence that the forecasts that the MTA had for hundreds or even thousands of trucks diverting through the Bronx has happened."

March 19, 2025

It’s Official: Mayoral Candidate Adrienne Adams Decimated Outdoor Dining

The city has authorized just 600 restaurants and bars to set up curbside when roadway outdoor dining resumes April 1.

March 18, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines: Show Me Your Plate Edition

The city tightened its rules targeting drivers who block their license plates. Plus more news.

March 18, 2025
See all posts