Politics & Government

POLL: An Unprotected Two-Way Bike Lane for Plaza Street?

A good compromise or too unsafe?

Last week, the transportation committees of Community Boards 8 and 6 and Plaza Street East. But unlike on Prospect Park West, this design has cars parked at the curb, leaving bikers unprotected.

The plan is a revision of the DOT’s 2010 proposal, which featured a Prospect Park West-style protected bike lane between the curb and the parked cars (see photo gallery for diagrams of both plans, and see the DOT's full presentation here.).

But they changed the design in response to concern from community residents that moving the cars away from the curb would leave the street would be too narrow for drivers to pass double-parked vehicles.

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DOT officials say the design makes it easier for bikers and cars to see each other when a bicyclist turns onto a side street and that no parking spaces would be lost (while 30 of the 90 berm-side parking spaces would be removed if a protected bike lane were installed).

Some critics of the plan say the design is too dangerous, forcing drivers to cross the bike lane both to go around double-parked cars and to park and making it difficult for people to cross the street.

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Others say a two-way bike lane is unnecessary, that bikers should be required to ride with traffic around the circle, rather than making accommodations for those breaking the law.

DOT officials, however, argue that 25 percent of bike riders already ride against traffic and at least a two-way bike lane would alert drivers.

Finally, several people at last week's contentious supported a proposal to put the two-way bike lane on the berm-side sidewalk, which is wide enough to the sidewalk belonged to the parks department and it would be much more complicated and expensive to pursue that plan. A resident also argued that park space shouldn’t be sacrificed for a bike lane.

So what do you think should be the plan for Plaza Street’s bike lane? Let us know in the poll below.


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