Articles and Actions
Events and Alerts |
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| Pricing Plan Gains Momentum, But Still Lacks State Support | |||
Governor Spitzer supports it. The federal government wants it. And State Senate Leader Joe Bruno has introduced legislation to enable it. But Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has yet to take a position on Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan, and time is running out.
We need you to write your Assembly member and cc Speaker Silver. They need to hear that their constituents support congestion pricing, and want them to take action before the sessions ends on June 21st. The timing of your letter could not be better. Last week a sea of green-shirted T.A. members and other supporters turned out for an important Assembly hearing to demonstrate widespread backing for the plan, as a means to fund $30 billion in vital transportation improvements and give New Yorkers much-needed traffic relief. In your letter you can counter the erroneous assertion made by Assemblymember Richard Brodsky (Westchester), who represents the wealthiest auto commuters in the entire metropolitan area, that congestion pricing is a "regressive tax on the middle class." In fact, the pricing plan is progressive because it will bring traffic relief and transit benefits to the large low and middle income majority who are more reliant on mass transit.
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| Congestion Pricing: Get the Facts | |||
BBQs from Bay Ridge to the South Bronx are heating up, not from the goodies on the grill, but from the fierce debates over congestion pricing. Get the facts and share them with your friends this weekend. And then tell them to contact their Assemblymembers.
Watch this new short film about congestion pricing. Check out T.A.'s fact sheet on congestion pricing. |
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| Considering a Car-Free Park | |||
At last Sunday's Tour de Brooklyn, DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan wowed the crowd with her bike friendly rhetoric and raised the hopes of thousands of park lovers by telling a Streetsblog reporter that she was considering a car-free Central Park trial this summer.
The New York Sun, the Daily News, Fox 5 and WNYC all picked up the story and fleshed it out by citing a T.A. poll that found one in 10 visitors to the park were injured by a vehicle, and 64% would use the park more if vehicles were banned. Although the DOT press office was quick to point out that Commissioner Sadik-Khan was only "considering" a car-free Central Park, advocates and supporters are pleased with the Commissioner's thoughtful consideration and see the Department's openness on this issue as a sign of the changing times. A car-free Central Park is entirely in line with Mayor Bloomberg's sustainability initiative. It would keep traffic from the FDR and West Side Highway from flooding neighborhood streets in search of a shortcut downtown, improve access to parks in underserved neighborhoods and increase the safety of 25 million Central Park users. |
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| Fresh Ideas for 3rd and 4th Avenues in Brooklyn | |||
This past weekend, parents, educators and residents of South Brooklyn came together for a Pedestrian Safety Forum focused on Brooklyn's 3rd and 4th Avenue corridor. The group began to identify problem areas that have contributed to an unacceptably high rate of injuries and fatalities in recent years and consider traffic calming remedies. The Community Education Council and Community Board 7 sponsored the event, and there was an incredible show of support and interest from diverse organizations, including the Center for Family Life, Friends of Sunset Park, the Sunset Park Association of Neighbors, the 42nd Street Block Association, Park Slope Neighbors, the Park Slope Civic Council, the Southwest Brooklyn IDC, the Gowanus Industrial Park, the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, and dozens of parents and local residents.
Elected officials echoed the importance of safer, more livable streets around their district schools and community destinations. Councilman de Blasio spoke, and representatives for Senator Montgomery, Borough President Markowitz, Councilwomen Gonzalez and Velasquez attended the event to hear presentations from the NYPD, DOT, Transportation Alternatives and Project for Public Spaces. Traffic calming measures are currently being considered for north end of 3rd and 4th Avenue in Boerum Hill, Gowanus and Park Slope through the Downtown Brooklyn Traffic Calming Plan. This landmark plan was the result of a community-led planning process with the DOT and made safe walking conditions a priority in Downtown Brooklyn neighborhoods. T.A. supports the full build-out of this thoughtful plan as soon as possible. Residents of Sunset Park are now voicing the need for a similar cohesive traffic calming plan for their neighborhood. Transportation Alternatives will continue to advocate in concert with the communities along 3rd and 4th Avenue to win safer streets. To find out more or to get involved in this campaign, please email ped@transalt.org. |
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| Tour de Brooklyn Photo Essay | |||
More than 2,000 cyclists cruised the streets of Brooklyn for the 3rd Annual Tour de Brooklyn on Sunday June 3rd. Led by New York City's new DOT Commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan, this year's ride explored southeast Brooklyn from verdant Park Slope to Sunset Park's bustling markets, to the stately mansions of Dyker Heights. Riders showed their Brooklyn pride throughout.
If you missed out on the fun, or just want to remember some of your favorite moments, check out T.A.'s Tour de Brooklyn Photo Essay and view the Streetfilms video. And don't miss out on T.A.'s next big ride--registration is now officially open for the 2007 NYC Century Bike Tour, go to NYCCentury.org today for more info and to sign up. |
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| Governors Island Walking Tours and Proposal Exhibit | |||
Come take an evening stroll on beautiful Governors Island and see the proposals for its new parks and historic public spaces. Each tour will be led by noted New York City park and preservation experts together with staff from the Governors Island Alliance, Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation (GIPEC) and the National Park Service.
After touring the Island and learning about issues from park experts and judge the designs for yourself at the on-island exhibit of the proposals.
June 21st, 5-7 pm with Tupper Thomas The Governors Island Ferry departs from Battery Maritime Building on South Street between Whitehall and Broad Streets, adjacent to the Staten Island ferry terminal.
If you can't make it out to Governors Island, or want to see the proposals without a ferry trip, they'll be on display at a public forum hosted by FIT on June 20th. |
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| Memorial Ride for Mark Grichevsky | |||
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On May 29th, 18 year old Mark Grichevsky was struck by a car while riding his bike near his home in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn. Four days later, he passed away in the hospital.
Mark was a student at City As School and an intern at Recycle-A-Bicycle. Friends, family, coworkers and the cycling community will honor his memory this Sunday with a bike ride.
Sunday, June 17th, 11 am |
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| T. A. In The News | |||
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Happy Bedfellows Spend Big for Mayor's Plan, New York Observer, 6/12
Parks Dept: Central Park Cyclists Must Stop at Traffic Signals, StreetsBlog, 6/12 Call for Ped Safety Measures on Third and Fourth Avenues, StreetsBlog, 6/11 Jon Orcutt Appointed as DOT Senior Policy Advisor, StreetsBlog, 6/11 DOT's New Boss a Spokes-Woman, New York Daily News, 6/11 Privacy Is an Issue for Critics of Cameras, New York Times, 6/9 First Impressions of Mayor Bloomberg's Testimony, StreetsBlog, 6/8 Rally at Congestion Pricing Hearing - Wear Green!, StreetsBlog, 6/7 Big City Mayors Promote Congestion Tax, Voice of America, 6/7 Brooklyn Becomes Cycle City--2000 Bike in Third-Annual Tour of the Borough, Courier Life Publications, 6/7 Propuesta $8 de peaje podrķa ser ley, Univision, 6/7 Cars and Bikes Can Mix, When the Rules of the Road are Clear, International Herald Tribune, 6/6 Confronting the NYC Park-and-Ride Concern, Mobilizing the Region, 6/6 Mass Cyclists are Critical of New Parade Permit Rule Enforcement, The Villager, 6/6 Car-Free Central Park?, WNYC, 6/5 Cars and Bikes Can Mix, When the Rules of the Road Are Clear, New York Times, 6/5 Car Ban May Be Enforced In Central Park, New York Sun, 6/5 City Considers Central Park Ban, gothamist, 6/5 NYPD Raid Nets Bikes and Bystanders, StreetsBlog, 6/5 T.A.: City, State Parking Drive Would Torpedo Taxi Initiative, StreetsBlog, 6/5 City Considers Banning Cars From Central Park During Summer, NY1, 6/5 Downfall of the Williamsburg Hip, Village Voice, 6/5 Central Park Car-Free?, Fox 5 News, 6/5 Yo! Come and Revel in Brooklyn this Summer, Courier Life Publications, 5/31 Transportation Alternatives is a member-supported non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Join T.A. today!
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