When NYC DOT installed this bike lane in June 2010 I was overjoyed. It made my daily commute much safer, more enjoyable and it sent a message that biking was encouraged in this city where it is so necessary to reduce traffic and pollution. To make this lane, the high-speed, three-lane (plus two parking lane) superhighway known as Prospect Park West was reduced to two driving lanes with a row of parked cars acting as a barrier between bikes and cars.
Sure, it was brilliant and improved safety while encouraging healthier lifestyles but this is Park Slope, Brooklyn, one of the most opinionated neighborhoods in the country and it will always produce dissent. Two advocacy groups, ironically titled “Neighbors for Better Bike Lanes” and “Seniors for Safety” have filed a lawsuit against the city to redesign/eliminate the bike path.
Thursday was a showdown, a Community Board Meeting offering everybody the chance to speak their mind on the issue and it was very clear that the majority — I would say close to 90% — were in favor of the project. Both sides had their share of fanatical devotees, but the ones with the most reasonable and public-policy oriented arguments were all heavily in support of the lane. Even seeing the detractors speak in front of my own eyes, I still found their opinions incomprehensible. Their arguments are selfish and petty and incredibly one-dimensional. Unfortunately, they appear to have money and are taking this process to court, which will probably double the cost of the project and waste public resources for private aesthetic and convenience concerns.
We need cars. Our infrastructure is built for them and they obviously make travel very fast, but they are also very inefficient for commuting in the city, given the abundance of (underfunded) public transportation and the harmful emissions of combustion engines. Bikes are a very personal form of public transportation and they are truly utilized as such in many cities with public bike exchange systems. New York is not there yet, but creating protected lanes (which are a huge step up from unprotected ones in terms of biker safety) is a progressive change in the right direction that should encourage healthier, safer and more efficient transportation in the city.