Streetfilms: Hop on the L Train Bike Train

“The city needs to make sure that everything they can do to let us get to Manhattan safely gets done,” said Council Member Antonio Reynoso.

biketrain-1

The L train shutdown — which will compel tens of thousands of New Yorkers to find an alternate route between Brooklyn and Manhattan — is a year away. But it’s not too soon to prepare.

This morning Transportation Alternatives organized the first L Train Bike Train to get Brooklynites in the swing of riding across the Williamsburg Bridge into Manhattan.

“The Bike Train is being launched as a weekly group bike commute for L Train commuters, people who are new to biking, or anyone looking to commute with a group leading up to and during the L Train shutdown,” TransAlt said in a statement.

Now it’s up to DOT to accommodate the expected growth in cycling. As you’ll see in Clarence’s Streetfilm, the bike train was obstructed by truckers who took over the unprotected painted lane on Borinquen Place at Marcy Avenue.

“What we want to do is make sure the infrastructure’s there,” said Council Member Antonio Reynoso, who participated in today’s ride. “The city needs to make sure that everything they can do to let us get to Manhattan safely gets done.”

  • the city really needs to demolish NYPD’s stupid concrete “anti-terror” bottlenecks on the Delancey side of the bridge.

  • If we had a police force that was responsive to the real needs of the community, then cops on bikes would be riding in bike lanes all day, ordering any driver who is blocking the lanes to move, and having unattended bike-lane-blocking cars towed away. But we don’t have that. Instead, we have a police force that refuses to act against motorists’ lawbreaking even when they see this lawbreaking happening right in front of them.

    If we had a civilian government that was exercising the powers that it possesses under the law, then our mayor would order the police department to step up this kind of enforcement against driver misconduct. But we don’t have that, either. Instead, we have a police force which considers the civilian government to be irrelevant, and which has arrogated to itself the policy-making function, in the manner of a military junta.

    If we’re lucky, maybe one day Reynoso will be mayor; and he will have to figure out a way to deal with police intransigence.

  • ohhleary

    The bike train is a great idea! Unfortunately, biking won’t be a viable option for me off the Jefferson stop — the most distant stop from either L train alternative (Shuttle Buses or the M Train) — until the city commits to expanding Citibike into Bushwick. It’s so frustrating that the city continues to refuse to spend public money on a wildly successful transportation option. And dockless bike share won’t help, as the city’s RFI specifically states that its service area cannot overlap with Citibike, making any dockless bike share useless for people trying to get to Manhattan (or even the G train).

  • Yes. At least shave them back some. From what I saw on a chilly morning yesterday, I can’t imagine how bad it is going to be 1) this summer and 2) next year without the L.

  • Toddster

    When’s the next one?

  • Vooch

    Clarence,

    These films are getting better and better. I loved the old films and yet you keep raising the bar.

    Thank you

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