This idiot with out-of-state plates parked in the bus-only "red lane" delaying busloads of commuters. I'm so glad we've got David Gantt to protect this guy's civil rights against "intrusive" automated bus lane enforcement.
Thanks to New York State legislator David Gantt, this cop is manually writing tickets for blocking the bus-only "red lane" on 57th St. instead of dealing with more serious crimes, suppodesly because an automated traffic enforcement program that the NY Civil Liberties Union signed off on might infringe Fedex's supposed "right to privacy." For every violator ticketed, several others get away scot free. Plus Fedex ends up paying a reduced fine thanks to NYC's stipulated fine program.
Way to rationally manage those streets!
Cops Diverted From Meaningful Law Enforcement Thanks to Bonehead State Legislator
Check out this idiot sitting his the cab of his truck doing paperwork in bus-only "red lane" on 57th St. while a line of buses full of commuters are stuck in traffic. I'm so glad we've got David Gantt to protect this guy's civil rights against "intrusive" automated bus lane enforcement.
Blocking Hundreds in The Red Lane While Doing Paperwork
This is just how I ride when I am out with both my kids. Older child up in front so Dad can spot hazards for him., while Dad rides with one hand on his own handlebars, the other on the younger child's. With a little practice, the adult in this situation can control the speed and direction of both bikes perfectly, and even come to a complete stop and hold it by distributing most of his weight across his and the child's bike. (You've heard of a trackstand, now try a kiddie bike stand!)
Both kids are legal on the sidewalk under NYC law (under age 12, wheel diameter of less than 26"). While the parent is not, I have never received complaints when riding at pedestrian speed on the sidewalk in this fashion--especially when pedestrians see that I have complete control.
In one of the more serious Central Park earth-moving projects in recent memory, the City is widening the gorge through which the 97th Street Transverse runs, just west of Park Drive East. A worker on the site told me it was to abate mudslides, and that the transverse itself would not be widened. I hope they re-landscape it when they are done, because it seems like they have removed quite a few trees.
How about a separated bike-ped path alongside the transverse?
I was passing through D.C. and couldn't help notice this simple but functional bike parking facility next to Union Square Station.
New York's Pennsylvania Station not only has no similar facility, there is not a single Cityrack around its entire 8/10 mile perimeter. Why is that?
Prince St. bike lane, looking west from Broadway. It was mostly clear for the 15 minutes during the morning rush hour I was there. I wonder if it's the green paint.
Navigating his way around a motorist and pedestrians blocking the box. Bicyclists deal with lawless motorists and pedestrians all the time. Why do pedestrians and motorists villify bicyclists for breaking the rules, even if they do it safely?
The New York City DoT is moving quickly to "re-square" Madison Square Park. Here on the western portion of Broadway, the entire roadbed has been scraped.
The New York City DoT is moving quickly to "re-square" Madison Square Park. Here the new pedestrian plaza south of the convergence of 5th and Broadway is being built.
The New York City DoT is moving quickly to "re-square" Madison Square Park. Here the new pedestrian plaza south of the convergence of 5th and Broadway is being built.
On West 70th Street: Police investigate the scene where an elderly man was hit by a car. I imagine the man was jaywalking, which is illegal, of course, but many people do that because there are no crosswalks on a very long block.
Video of a bunch of people (including what looks like a 8-yo girl) shooting the shit out of cars and stuff with fully automatic machine guns...the footage is from the Oklahoma Full Auto Shoot & Trade Show.
Wooden bicycles can be found all over the world. These handmade bikes are often larger-scale scooters that you sit on. Made with whatever wood can be found, they use small wooden home-made wheels covered with discarded rubber rims.
Gasoline prices, which shattered the $4-a-gallon mark on average in the Washington area Friday, ranged as high as $4.39 a gallon for regular yesterday amid signs that cash-strapped Americans are changing vacation plans, consolidating errands, and turning
A video clip of La Paz, Bolivia's crossing guard zebras, the Cebra Voluntaria. Traffic in La Paz is so dangerous that its mayor started a program to have youths dressed as zebras help people across the city's busiest intersections.
Green Wheels NEC members noticed sidewalks were overgrown in Arcata, California, making it difficult to walk. So they headed out to do something about it...
More at www.green-wheels.org
Volunteers are Chris Rall, Chad Johnson, Sara Dykman, Aaron Antrim and Adam Jamin
Radar gun session demonstrates routine speeding by motor vehicles on 65th St. Transverse in New York's Central Park during morning rush hour. the speed limit here is 30 MPH, and the traffic sign the back of which is visible on the left reads: CAUTION-SLOW-LANE NARROWS TO 11'0."
An account and discussion of the fatal crash that occurred here in December 2006 is found here:
http://www.streetsblog.org/2007/08/22/central-park-66th-street-transverse-is-unsafe/
Pictures and excerpts from the police investigation of the fatal accident are found here:
http://flickr.com/photos/11992136@N08/sets/72157601595007852/
New York Department of Transportation and Police Department have been advised of this dangerous condition. Will steps be taken remove the hazard presented by the routine speeding next to this hazardous pinch point before another bicyclists is injured or killed?
The traffic trying to exit the Central Park Loop this morning at 7th Avenue and 59th Street was backed up nearly to 72nd Street. There was no apparent reason for this other than congestion. Perhaps those who formerly used the CP Loop between 7 and 8 am and have under the new schedule simply shifted their trip to later, causing this congestion. It shouldn't take folks too much longer to figure out that they must simply stop driving through the park (or at all), rather than clinging to old habits. The best way to get the message across to these people is to eliminate cars from Central Park entirely.
here are the two previous installments in this series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxBv2Hx52rM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaD0fgKfFo4
South Shore Motorists Allow Pedestrians To Take Over Roadway
A common sight on Long Island's south shore--recreational walkers ignore the grassy shoulder and walk instead in a single lane roadway. This is illegal but the pedestrians in these parts do it routinely. The motorists make sure to pass at a safe distance and speed. Why do so many of these same motorists, when in NYC, fail to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk and otherwise play "chicken" with pedestrians?
Here on Long Island's south shore, the motorists seem to understand the need to keep a safe distance from bicyclists and pass them only when it is safe to do so--even if it slows them down temporarily. Why do so many of these same motorists, when they return to NYC, routinely endanger bicyclists by pushing them to the margins of the roadway and passing at unsafe distances and speeds?
The nine-year old bicyclist shown in the previous clip explains why a westbound bike lane on East 91st Street would be good for bicyclists, children, and others who use this street, despite the objections of some.
Part I: Bikes, Pedestrians Co-Exist on E. 91st Street
Here are some bicyclists climbing the hill up East 91st Street (NYC) on the car-free block between Second and Third Avenues on Saturday afternoon, August 4, at 2:05 pm. Some local residents have opposed the routing of a bike lane along this block because they think it will disrupt children, seniors, and others who use this space. This clip demonstrates that this view is wrong. The middle part of the street is not heavily used, even on this sunny Saturday afternoon. The bicyclists proceed so slowly uphill that they are not a danger or disruption to any one. Even the apparent delivery bicyclist who rides downhill does so slowly and cautiously, without interfering with the wheelchair users or others in this space. Directing an uphill bicycle route along this block would be great for people seeking to bicycle between or among Yorkville, Carnegie Hill, Central Park or the East Side Greenway, and would not detract from the character of the block, which as you can see already accomodates bicycle traffic. Next clip shows an interview with one of the bicyclists (the other two bicyclists just happened to be there).
Inaugural 1-Hour Rollback of Car Traffic In Central Park
We held a small celebration on the first day of the new restriction on auto traffic in Central Park. Cars are now excluded from West Drive on weekdays until 8 am, rather than 7 am. It was great to see so many people out enjoying the park Loop. However this group of cyclists was being chased at 7:12 am by two cars.
Cars line up to cut through the park a few minutes before 5:00 PM. At almost exactly 5:00 PM, a Parks Department employee opens the gates and the cars stream in.
What does 7 PM mean? What do car-free hours in NYC parks mean? I shot this video on Wednesday, 6/20/07 at the 3rd Street entrance on the west side of Brooklyn's Prospect Park.
In the fifteen minutes before a Parks Department van arrived, about 50 cars entered the park at 3rd Street. While that might not seem like a big number by traffic standards, many cars are also entering at busier locations, such as Grand Army Plaza and near the start of Ocean Parkway.
Most people can't enjoy the park during the day. Wouldn't it be nice if walkers, runners, bikers, kids, parents, and anyone else who wanted to enjoy the park on weekday evenings didn't have to chase daylight in a losing battle against cars?
PLEASE NOTE: This is not meant as a criticism of the well-meaning Parks Department employees responsible for closing the park. They are only doing their jobs with the resources - one van and two people - they have. What is needed is an institutional change, more resources to send out more teams, better barriers, and stricter enforcement.
TV ad focusing on the health benefits of Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC 2030 goals. The ad features Keisha Lee, a Queens mother of seven children who all have asthma. She speaks about her strong belief that her children's asthma is tied to exposure to heavy traffic in her neighborhood and calls for immediate action to implement PlaNYC 2030 to improve the air quality in New York City.
Brooklyn Community Board 6 executive committee member Robert Levine lays out his case against DOT's traffic safety plan for 9th Street:
"I'm not against traffic calming. I'm not against bike lanes. I think the combination of both on 9th Street is a dangerous situation."
I was on my way from SoHo to Park Slope when I saw a most remarkable assemblage of press vehicles in the PROTECTED (ie. walled-off) bike lane on Tillary St. Could the story have been that yet another cyclist had been mowed down on the city streets? Join me in riding in this nice, safe space!
NYPD Keeps a Vigilant Watch Over Illegally Parked Cars
November 16, 2006: having become disgusted with all the illegal parking by NYPD employees and other civil servants, I bring my camera out to the southern portion of the bridle path to document the abuse. This isn't the only time an NYPD employee has questioned me for trying to so so. I told the woman who questioned me that I was concerned about illegal parking on the bridal path, and asked her to alert the Central Park Precinct (located across the transverse road), but I have seen nothing in the months that followed to suggest she did. NYPD knows knows that if their abuses are publicized, there's an outside chance someone will do something about it. Let's see what happens.
NYPD has set up a parking lot on the southern portion of the bridle path in Central Park. It's a place lots of people like to walk, jog, and ride horses, but they have to contend with a constant stream of vehicles like this behemoth lumbering down the path. The bridle path wasn't made for cars and trucks--it was made for horses--so all the NYPD and other traffic erodes the raod surface causing pits and craters that are treacherous when they freeze over in the winter. How about a little road repair on the bridle path, NYPD?
