Bicycling

Eyes on the Street: Phase 2 of Queens Boulevard Redesign Takes Shape

Green paint is down on a new section of the Queens Boulevard bike lane in Elmhurst.

By David Meyer

2:40 PM EDT on August 29, 2016

Using #QueensBlvd #bikenyc 2nd Phase at midnight, thanks for the improvements made @NYC_DOT @BilldeBlasio @transalt pic.twitter.com/Qfz8xvKcvS
— Claudia Corcino (@corcino_claudia) August 29, 2016

Green paint is down on a new section of the Queens Boulevard bike lane in Elmhurst.

The second phase of the Queens Boulevard redesign runs from 74th Street to Eliot Avenue [PDF], extending east from phase one, which was implemented in Woodside last year. After construction wraps up this summer, there will be 2.5 miles of continuous median-aligned bike lanes on the most important east-west route in Queens.

In addition to the bike lane, the project calms car traffic and creates safer walking conditions. Below is a new crosswalk at a stop-controlled transition from the center roadway to the service road at Cornish Avenue. Previously, the design enabled drivers to merge quickly, without stopping.

The outline of new stop-controlled transitions between the main road and the service road at Cornish Avenue. Photo: @TransitNinja205 — Photo: @TransitNinja205

The project is still a work in progress. Still to come, among other things, are plastic posts to separate the bike lane from motor vehicle traffic.

DOT crews installing the new protected bike lane earlier this month at Kneeland Street. Photo: DOT — DOT crews painting the new bike lane earlier this month at Kneeland Street. Photo: NYC DOT

Phase 3 will extend improvements to Rego Park and Forest Hills next year. In 2018, the city will begin to build out these changes in concrete.

David Meyer

David was Streetsblog's do-it-all New York City beat reporter from 2015 to 2019. He returned as an editor in 2023 after a three-year stint at the New York Post and is now Managing Editor.