Comments on: Queens Plaza Protected Cycletrack is Open for Business

By: R Marcus

R Marcus — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:53:00 +0000

On 7-27 several of the bike images were removed from the pathway. My guess is that there will be some changes. Agreed that the Manhattan side needs work just as bad.
A Major issue on the Queens side is that several sidewalk curb cuts are NOT level and in Wet weather we will have cyclists going Down. Additionally I still state that the cobblestones at the Queens Exit/Entrance is a big mistake as riders may go onto or over them risking biking into traffic or falling.
D.O.T IF YOU READ THIS, PLEASE PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS.

By: Daudarchitecht

Daudarchitecht — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:58:00 +0000

coOL I'm planning that type for my city - soon in Tbilisi by DauD thx You are first

By: Bluewonderpowermilk96

Bluewonderpowermilk96 — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 00:41:00 +0000

To Bicycles Only:

Easier said than done. There needs to be a Class 1 bike lane on E 60th
Street from 2nd Avenue to 5th Avenue at least (anything short of that is
playing with death) AND an overpass connecting E 60th Street directly
to the bike lane at the U-turn bend.

The whole Manhattan side of Bridge Plaza needs to be revamped. Parking lane readjustment on E 59th Street and E 60th Streets, new asphalt and pavement markings, lane realignment on 2nd Avenue, new concrete and plastic bollards and if they reopened the old trolley terminal and make it a bus terminal like in Jackson Heights, that's a huge plus.

AND (not done yet)

access for peds and bikes traveling southbound on the east side of 2nd avenue has to be addressed.

phew!

By: What the F-train?

What the F-train? — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 00:07:00 +0000

Lawsuit for what? Do you need before and after pics? It's a green space with ped/bike Class 1 access, safety measures to deter unsafe jaywalking and a roadway realignment for two boulevards. Suing the NYCDOT, NYSDOT and EDC; have fun with that.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 16:36:00 +0000

This looks awesome!

By: Omribenamos

Omribenamos — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:08:00 +0000

It's full of win! This thing is a major improvement -- up next: a bike lane on Queens Blvd.?

By: NeighborsforBetterBridgeAccess

NeighborsforBetterBridgeAccess — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:07:00 +0000

You expect us to look both ways when crossing this monstrosity? This makes Queens Boulevard look like one of those horrible DOT play streets.

Expect our lawsuit.

By: Eric McClure

Eric McClure — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:05:00 +0000

Sweet.

By: Juan

Juan — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:33:00 +0000

That's what I was wondering about. Next on the DOT's list should be providing a route which links the Queensboro to the Pulaski.

By: AN

AN — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:10:00 +0000

Congrats to DOT for making this happen. This is fantastic progress on the 20 year trajectory of making the Q-boro Bridge a safe and viable route for bike commuting.

As Jan Gehl says, "It's great to live in a city where every day you wake up and the city has become a little bit better than it was the day before."

By: AlexB

AlexB — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:02:00 +0000

I think it's supposed to go all the way to Vernon, but right now it only goes from Northern to 21st St. A major aesthetic and safety improvement!

By: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

Clarence Eckerson Jr. — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 02:20:00 +0000

In the past, if you wanted to legally travel east off the bridge to Queens Boulevard, you had a few options and ALL of them were problematic and made you go out of your way. I think this path will shave at least 2 or 3 minutes off my "legal" ride when I use QBB back to Queens.

By: vnm

vnm — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 00:08:00 +0000

I love the shot from the elevated subway! I was riding the N train on Sunday and looking down at the nearly completed cycle track, some parts of which were open, and thinking, wow, that is looking great. It looks even better now that it's open.

By: Joe R.

Joe R. — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 22:53:00 +0000

This makes me want to take the long 9 or so mile trek down there one night just to check it out. Looks like a great facility.

By: Andy B from Jersey

Andy B from Jersey — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 22:21:00 +0000

This looks like a really great facility, one that I would love to have in New Jersey but I'm still going to pick small two nits on this, one of which is actually a great problem to have.

First, what's with the ubiquitous solid yellow line? That means no passing but people are always going to doing it anyway on bikes as the video shows. A solid yellow should only be used on blind turns or in exceptionally narrow areas. A dashed yellow should have been used in the straightaways and a solid line used in the curves or other areas of concern. Carte blanche use of the solid yellow line causes it to quickly loose its meaning as Clarence's video demonstrates.

Finally, the cycletrack looks too narrow for the volume of bicycle traffic on this "just opened" facility. And Clarence says its not even completed yet! I rarely advocate for using more asphalt at the expense of greenspace but this looks like one place were it would be justified.

Still, I wish we had such "problems" with the bicycle facilities we have here in New Jersey. On this side of the Hudson, where we even have bicycle amenities, most are such a joke that its not even worth acknowledging them as such.

By: Shemp

Shemp — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 21:43:00 +0000

It's actually a NYC EDC project with DOT input

By: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

Clarence Eckerson Jr. — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 21:23:00 +0000

Once they are done with the full project, I am gonna do something more comprehensive and even use a few horrid BEFORE shots (and talk about the green spaces and pedestrian safety too.) I just heard about it yesterday at 4 pm, right as I was heading back to pack for Minneapolis. But still wanted to get the first shots up live.

By: Matthew Kime

Matthew Kime — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 20:42:00 +0000

I used to commute through that intersection. I'll have to cruise through for a visit.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 19:28:00 +0000

Inspirational in every way, from the path's sheer existence to Clarence's evocative shots. My one wish for the next similar film would be a graphic conveying (for me and other ignorami) precisely where the path is, what it connects, and its length. Thanks!

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 19:19:00 +0000

Thanks to all the folks at DOT who worked on this project. I know it took some real thought and some good engineering to get this done.