Brooklyn

A Streestblog tipster snapped this photo of workers in Williamsburg, Brooklyn preparing the southeast corner of Bedford Avenue and N. 7th Street for a historic sidewalk widening. So, what's the big deal?

The third annual Tour de Brooklyn was a special treat as New York City DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan rode the entire event with over 2,000 enthusiastic cyclists. The new commissioner introduced herself to riders at the beginning of the ride and had some very positive things to say about cycling in New York City. The ride covered 18 miles, starting in Grand Army Plaza, heading down 4th Avenue to Bay Ridge, then stopping in Dyker Heights for a respite before returning to Prospect Park. As always with the TdB, the emphasis was on friends, family, and fun.

Local elected officials appear to be moving from a "tax on the middle class" critique of Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing proposal to a "park-and-ride" argument. Check out these two letters from senior Brooklyn Assembly member Joseph Lentol to constituents. In the first letter, written May 15, Lentol says that he is giving congestion pricing "his full review and consideration." He expresses no specific opinion or concerns about the plan:

New York City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan enjoys a lighter moment with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz as Noah Budnick of Transportation Alternatives welcomes cyclists to the 2007 Tour de Brooklyn.

A letter in the Daily News this week reminds us of the need for better enforcement as well as the open source hit-and-run investigation conducted by Streetsblog readers last November:

We're pleased to announce that Alex Marshall will now be contributing to Streetsblog. As a journalist and author Alex has written extensively on how transportation shapes our cities. He is a columnist at Governing Magazine and a senior fellow at the Regional Plan Association where he edits the bi-weekly Spotlight on the Region newsletter. Here is his first piece for Streetsblog:

City Council Member David Yassky has come out in favor of congestion pricing, with the caveat that "many features of the Mayor's proposal will need to be reworked." Yassky's Brooklyn district, it's worth noting, encompasses three East River bridges, the Battery Tunnel and a seemingly endless number of of honking, spewing, frustrated motorists. Until last week, Yassky had been a long-time fence-sitter on the congestion pricing issue. Why did he finally commit? Last week Mayor Bloomberg announced that New York City's taxi fleet would be converted to all-hybrid vehicles by 2012. The Mayor was notably generous in crediting Yassky (twice, on national television, in the presence of Al Roker, no less) for conceiving of and fighting for the hybrid taxi initiative in City Council. Here's what Yassky wrote in an e-mail announcement to constituents:

The Department of Transportation has unveiled plans to turn the gritty Pearl Street Triangle in DUMBO into a public plaza. The plaza will be similar to the one DOT creaed on Willoughby Street in Downtown Brooklyn last year. The Triangle currently serves as a parking lot.

State Assembly Member Joan Millman's Downtown and brownstone Brooklyn district includes some of the most politically progressive, environmentally-conscious and traffic-choked neighborhoods of New York City -- neighborhoods that have been clamoring for traffic relief for years. Yet, Millman is, for now, opposed to Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan. In a letter sent to constituents who contacted her office Millman cites five concerns, summed up as follows: