This Week: Fixing Amsterdam Avenue With a Safer Design

Tomorrow, NYC DOT is expected to present a plan for a protected bike lane and pedestrian islands on Amsterdam Avenue to the Community Board 7 transportation committee. It's been a long time coming: Locals have pressed for a redesign of the dangerous, high-speed conditions on Amsterdam for many years, with the community board passing three resolutions since 2009 calling on DOT to study or implement a protected bike lane.

Most recently, CB 7 passed a resolution this summer calling on DOT to "immediately" install "pedestrian refuges, curb extensions, signal timing, and a protected northbound bike lane on Amsterdam Avenue." You never know how the transportation committee will respond to a good street redesign proposal, though -- supporters will have to make their voices heard.

Also this week, public workshops for the second phase of DOT's Queens Boulevard redesign kick off on Thursday.

Here are the calendar highlights -- there's a lot more going on in our complete listings.

• Monday: DOT hosts a public meeting about pedestrian safety, traffic congestion, and "parking issues" in Highland Park/Cypress Hills. 6:00 p.m.
• Also Monday: The feasibility of a biking and walking path across the Verrazano Bridge is on the agenda when the MTA presents to Brooklyn Community Board 10. 7:00 p.m.
• Tuesday: DOT is expected to finally present plans for a protected bike lane on Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side at what promises to be a blockbuster meeting of the Manhattan CB 7 transportation committee. 6:30 p.m.
• Thursday: Gridlock Sam Schwartz talks about his new book, "Street Smart: The Rise of Cities and The Fall of Cars," at NYU's Rudin Center. Register here. 9:00 a.m.
• More Thursday: The City Council transportation committee holds a hearing on "ways to better connect the city’s transit deserts." 10 a.m.
• Also Thursday: This year, DOT added pedestrian space, safer slip lanes, and protected bike lanes on 1.3 miles of Queens Boulevard. Now DOT is turning its attention east of that section for phase two of the overhaul of the city's most notoriously car-centric street. Share your ideas about redesigning Queens Boulevard from 74th Street to Eliot Avenue at this public workshop. 7:00 p.m.
• Sunday: March from City Hall to the UN with Families for Safe Streets and Transportation Alternatives for the World Day of Remembrance for Victims of Traffic Violence. Noon.

Keep an eye on the calendar for updated listings. Got an event we should know about? Drop us a line.