Tuesday’s Headlines: Citi Bike’s Big News (Or is it?) Edition

The big story today will be Citi Bike’s expansion announcement, which will be exciting for many, but depressing for others (sorry, Bay Ridge, but Oprah doesn’t run Citi Bike, so no one is screaming, “You’re getting a bike share, and you’re getting a bike share, and …”).

Hats off to David Meyer of the Post for beating Streetsblog by a few minutes with the news that Citi Bike would slowly expand to Corona (on the east), all of Manhattan, parts of the Bronx, Sunset Park (to the south) and other areas by (hold onto your helmets!) 2023.

Streetsblog will be on hand at today’s press conference in the Bronx to ask, “Why so long?”

For now, though, here’s the news from a busy Monday:

• Come on, MTA, these were new escalators … at brand-new stations! Really? (The City)
• Meanwhile, how important is NY Post reporter David Meyer? He tweeted a funny picture of hand-written signs at a subway station — and the next thing you know, a red-faced NYC Transit President Andy Byford was emailing him to apologize. (NY Post)
• In case you missed it, Clyde Haberman did a deep, Timesian dive on driverless cars, but mostly stuck to the psychology of whether humans will accept them. Again, the Times has missed the point: single-person-occupancy vehicles are anathema to urban life, whether they are piloted by a human or by a machine. We need fewer cars on our roads, half of which should be turned into pedestrianized zones or shared streets anyway.
• Gothamist is the latest outlet to be told that DOT has “no timeline” for the completion of the Queens Boulevard safety redesign, which was a signature de Blasio project … until it wasn’t.
• We are so happy that Bike NY offers biking classes for would-be cyclists (Gothamist), but we have to point out that all the lessons are no match for roads that are designed to enable cars to kill. The de Blasio administration must do more so newly trained cyclists aren’t thrust onto unprotected roadways dominated by speeding drivers.
• We’re urging everyone in #bikenyc to enter the New Yorker’s caption contest this week, if only to help us understand what’s even happening in the photo. Doug Gordon is already on the case.
• Staten Island Rep. Max Rose calls on Gov. Cuomo to use the Rock as a laboratory for micro-mobility. His letter argues, “It is essential to implement innovative solutions that can finally give Staten Islanders a credible option between driving and mass transit. … Microtransit should aim to boost ridership on existing systems. Microtransit is not the panacea to Staten Island’s transit woes, but it should be a part of a holistic treatment.”
• TransitCenter Deputy Executive Director (and soon-to-be mom) Tabitha Decker made a strong play for being named Streetsblog’s 2019 Vision Zero Hero of the year, grabbing a Citi Bike to get to her ob-gyn appointment on Monday. Her Twitter thread reveals that the only thing harder than giving birth without an epidural is biking around Lower Manhattan when the cops suddenly stop enforcing bike lane blocking rules. (Decker via Twitter)
• Hockey — and bike lane! — enforcer Sean Avery rejected a plea deal on the charge that he rammed his scooter into a car that was blocking a bike lane. The plea deal would have only required the former NHL star to pay $3,000 and would clear his record if he stays out of trouble … which, perhaps, he doesn’t think is likely. (NY Post)