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Transportation & Environment
Application by Department of Transportation for a parking-protected bicycle lane on 7th Avenue between West 26th and West 30th Streets
WHEREAS, The New York City Department of Transportation ("DOT") has proposed the installation of a protected bicycle lane on 7th Avenue between West 26th and West 30th Streets; and
WHEREAS, In 2014, Community Board Five requested a study by DOT of 7th Avenue for the installation of a protected bike lane; and
WHEREAS, The Vision Zero program calls for an expanded bicycle network in Manhattan; and
WHEREAS, The Vision Zero program mandates a multi-agency effort to improve safety measures for all road users and reduce traffic fatalities; and
WHEREAS, DOT has identified 7th Avenue as a Vision Zero Priority Corridor; and
WHEREAS, Peak motor vehicle volume on 7th Avenue between West 26th and West 30th Streets reaches upwards of 1,200 vehicles per hour; and
WHEREAS, More than 1,700 bikers per day currently travel on 7th Avenue despite the existing southbound bike lane on 9th Avenue; and
WHEREAS, 7th Avenue serves as a vital segment of the Citi-Bike service, which network-wide, experiences more than 60,000 rides per day; and
WHEREAS, Between 2011 and 2015 175 pedestrians, 96 bikers, and 239 motor vehicle passengers were injured while traveling on the 7th Avenue corridor; and
WHEREAS, The existing condition consists of one 8-foot-wide parking lane on the west side of 7th Avenue, four eleven-foot-wide travel lanes, and an 8-foot-wide parking lane on the east side of the Avenue; and
WHEREAS, Current conditions in the corridor encourage erratic driving and speeding via wide traffic lanes; and
WHEREAS, Current conditions in the corridor allow for unpredictable maneuvers generally, and especially promote unsafe turns by motor vehicles; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to install a new 6-foot-wide bicycle lane on the east side of the Avenue, protected by a 5-foot-wide painted buffer zone and an 9-foot-wide parking lane; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to maintain the existing 8-foot-wide parking lane on the west side of the Avenue while narrowing the driving lanes to create three 10-foot-wide driving lanes; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to create concrete pedestrian islands, some of which will contain plantings, to shorten pedestrian street crossing distance to allow for safer street crossings; and
WHEREAS, DOT studies have demonstrate that narrower driving lanes and floating parking lanes calm motor vehicle traffic and inspire slower and safer driving; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes the use of Mixing Zones for turning vehicles and bicycles at the intersections between 7th Avenue and West 26th and 28th Streets, as these zones improve visibility of both pedestrians and cyclists and provide space to negotiate the merge, helping to process through traffic; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to install the bicycle lane on the east side of the Avenue, so as not to interfere with the existing rush hour bus lane on the west side of the Avenue; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to paint the newly-created bicycle lane with standard green-colored paint, accented with white-colored markings to indicate the proper direction of bicycle traffic; and
WHEREAS, The proposal will require the removal of a total of fourteen parking spaces from the east side of 7th Avenue along the affected blocks and will not affect parking spaces on the west side of the Avenue; and
WHEREAS, Similar parking-protected bicycle lanes created on 1st, 2nd, 6th, 8th, and 9th Avenues have dramatically reduced accidents and injuries; and
WHEREAS, DOT proposes to educate the public about the new street design initially using the Ambassador program on the ground on location; and
WHEREAS, Although several members of the public raised general concerns regarding the dangers to pedestrians resulting from bicyclists who ignore traffic regulations, there was general support for the proposal by members of the public; and
WHEREAS, Several members of the public urged DOT to investigate alternatives to the use of Mixing Zones at intersections, citing the dangers caused by the unregulated mixing of cars and bicycles; and
WHEREAS, Members of the public also urged DOT to extend the proposed bicycle lane further north to Central Park; and
WHEREAS, DOT plans to begin a comprehensive study of the use of Mixing Zones and other intersection management designs such as Split Phase Signals later in 2017, in order to discover the safest and most efficient method for all travelers to share the City streets; and
WHEREAS, DOT acknowledged the potential for an extension of the proposed bicycle lane pending results from an on-going traffic study of 7th Avenue between West 30th and West 34th Streets; therefore be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of DOT's request for the installation of a protected bicycle lane on the east side of 7th Avenue, between West 26th and West 30th Streets; and therefore be it further
RESOLVED, Community Board Five requests that DOT return to the Transportation and Environment Committee at the appropriate time to present the results of its comprehensive study on the use of Mixing Zones and other intersection management designs such as Split Phase Signals; and therefore be it further
RESOLVED, Community Board Five requests that the New York City Department of Transportation and the New York Police Department increase efforts to insure the safe and lawful use of the streets by bicycles and bicyclists, including increased enforcement of traffic laws applying to bicyclists, including, without limitation, laws relating to bicycling with the direction of vehicular traffic, stopping at red lights, and not riding on sidewalks.