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

Wednesday’s Headlines: How Not to Build a Bike Lane Edition

Photo: Vladimir Vince

It's our December donation drive. Your gift helps us do these kinds of important stories. So please click here.
It's our December donation drive. Your gift helps us do important stories. So please click here.

Just when we've been praising the Department of Transportation left (great job on the E.L. Grant Highway!) and right (how about that cargo bike loading zone in Tribeca!) lately, the agency takes a machete to its foot — and then puts the foot in its mouth.

It all started with this amazing tweet by Friend of (and Contributor to) Streetsblog Vladimir Vince to show off DOT handiwork on a stretch of bike lane in Bensonhurst:

https://twitter.com/mejs/status/1332751574385512454?s=20

Lots of people were confused about a stretch of bike lane — a two-way bike lane, at that! — that sends cyclists onto a sidewalk bus stop, where they would likely encounter people standing around waiting for a bus (and not necessarily looking the other way of traffic). But — sure enough! — that's exactly what the DOT wanted. In response to Vince's tweet, the agency tweeted out a link to a 24-page PDF about its design for that bike lane — a tweet that was immediately mocked by pretty much everyone on Twitter, including Second Avenue Sagas (below) and Doug Gordon.

Oddly, the agency never responded to our tweet, asking about the bus-sign pole that is literally in the middle of the bike lane (photo at the top of this post).

In other news from a slow day:

    • The big story yesterday was the failure of Congress — again — to bail out transit. Streetsblog got out of the gate fast, but amNY quickly followed. Mass Transit played it way too straight. The Washington Post buried the lede.
    • In a related story, everyone slammed the prospect of a fare hike, including Rep-elect Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island), whose party bears decades worth of responsibility for starving transit and subsidizing driving (including the toll discounts that she demanded continue). (NY Post, amNY)
    • In another related story, Gothamist dug deep into the congestion pricing mess.
    • The bike boom is continuing. (NYDN)
    • The city's dangerous streets violate the civil rights of blind people. (NY Times)
    • A Staten Island pedestrian was killed by an MTA bus driver. (NY Post)
    • Meanwhile, Todd Maisel reminds us anew of the horrifying destructive power of a speeding car. (amNY)
    • Reminder: See that donation logo on the top of this page? Well, you know... (The honor roll of benefactors from yesterday: Thanks, David, Brandi, Lawrence, Sam, Austin, Stacy, Mark, Avishai, John, Tonio, Merm, Leo, Linda, Adam, Jonah, and Shaurav!).

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

After Dismissing Streetsblog’s Reporting, FDNY Simplifies Rules for E-Bike Charging Stations … That Streetsblog Exposed

The FDNY changed its guidelines in the middle of a City Council hearing where it faced questions about delays to the program.

October 29, 2025

Unfinished Astoria Bike Lane Languishes As Judge Delays Lawsuit Ruling

The completion of Astoria's 31st Street protected bike lane may get pushed to next year if Judge Cheree Buggs doesn't make up her mind soon.

October 29, 2025

Coke Ain’t It! Streetsblog Editor Snorts in Protest As Fed Agents Seize Bike Lane Again

What do we have to do to get rid of DEA officers' cars from the bike lane? Shoot heroin? Hmmm...

October 29, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines: Another Dick in a Car Edition

Car drivers always have some bizarre excuse for breaking the law. Plus other news.

October 29, 2025
See all posts