Transportation Alternatives

In the latest issue of TA's Reclaim, "Traffic" author Tom Vanderbilt revisits the May New York Magazine profile of Janette Sadik-Khan, and its portrayal of projects like car-free Broadway as tributes to the city's oft-mythologized non-driving "elite."

The New York City Council voted 46-1 this afternoon in favor of Intro 871, the Bicycle Access Bill, opening the door to significant gains in commuter cycling. Cyclists who do not commute by bike have long cited the lack of a secure place to lock up as the most important factor holding them back. Intro 871 will give thousands of them a new legal framework to petition for bicycle access at their places of work, but stops short of guaranteeing access to all buildings. All told, its passage marks the biggest legislative victory ever achieved by bicycle advocates in New York City.

The Bicycle Access Bill, Intro 871, is on track to clear the City Council this Wednesday, in what will be a major milestone for the livable streets movement in New York City. We just received an announcement from Council Member David Yassky's office that passage of Intro 871 is a done deal. This time, there is no doubt that the full City Council will take up the bill during its next stated meeting. With 35 co-sponsors and mayoral support, its passage has been secured.

We've got a date for the third annual Park(ing) Day NYC festivities: September 18. For those unfamiliar with Park(ing) Day, it's kind of like the Christmas of livable streets. Or maybe Sukkot is a better analogy. Parking spaces all over the city will be converted to mini-parks and pedestrian zones. For a day, the potential to re-program space for cars as space for people feels much more tangible.

Biking Rules, the new campaign organized by Transportation Alternatives, is sponsoring a video and photo PSA competition. Submissions are now being accepted for two categories in the competition: "Why Biking Rules!" and "The Biking Rules Street Code."

Transportation Alternatives' recent report, Executive Order [PDF], contains so much information about the state of traffic enforcement in New York, it's impossible to summarize in one post. So in the weeks ahead, Streetsblog will be taking a closer look at what's in the report and what the implications are for law enforcement.

Every year, vehicular violence claims the lives of about 300 New Yorkers and injures thousands more. But even in cases where victims die, drivers are often allowed to get right back behind the wheel as long as they are sober, licensed, and remain at the scene.

Transportation Alternatives today released a troubling report on the state of local traffic enforcement, and called on Mayor Bloomberg to establish a new office tasked with reining in dangerous drivers and reducing fatalities and injuries on city streets.