Brooklyn

Park Slope's 9th Street corridor, with Prospect Park on one end and the Battery Tunnel on the other, has long been known as one of the most dangerous streets in the neighborhood when it comes to car crashes.

Below is a sketch of DOT's plan for 9th Street in Park Slope, Brooklyn. We think it's a great plan deserving of support. The new configuration narrows a notoriously dangerous four lane road down to two travel lanes and adds a median with left-turn bays and a pair of bike lanes with three-foot buffers.

Crash counts show that 9th Street is one of the most dangerous streets in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

Gowanus Lounge reports on the debate over DOT's 9th Street redesign plan at last night's Park Slope Civic Council meeting. The Civic Council voted overwhelmingly to "table" a plan that would provide the neighborhood with improved pedestrian safety on one of the most hazardous streets in the area, enhanced cyclist safety along a key access route to Prospect Park and Red Hook, and traffic-calming along an overly broad street with low vehicle counts and a serious speeding problem.

 DOT Deputy Commissioner Michael Primeggia on March 15: "I know that two-way streets are less safe."

Brooklyn City Councilmember Lew Fidler and a small group of his outer borough colleagues have put forward Resolution 774 "calling upon the Mayor of New York City to oppose the institution of any form of congestion pricing." The resolution is based on a March 2006 report commissioned by the Queens Chamber of Commerce that was, to put it mildly, filled with misinformation and gaping holes about the City of London's congestion charging experience.

Current configuration

Brooklyn Council member Lew Fidler (above) is circulating an anti-congestion pricing resolution urging Mayor Bloomberg to oppose any form of road pricing. Fidler's resolution appears to be a shot across the bow in preparation for the mayor's forthcoming Long-Term Planning and Sustainability speech. Last week, Deputy Mayor Dan Doctoroff hinted that the speech would include "bold and creative" transportation policy ideas that come with a cost. Fidler, reportedly, will announce his resolution this coming Wednesday.