Regardless of your take on Critical Mass—whether you see it as a celebratory call for a less car-centric city, or an illegal, traffic jamming nuisance—one thing is clear: it demonstrates the ever-growing popularity of bicycling and huge public demand for a safer, more bicycle friendly New York City.

“For every bicyclist in Critical Mass, there are tens of thousands of New Yorkers who ride everyday, for work, pleasure, or a quick and easy commute,” said Paul S. White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives, New York City’s advocates for bicyclists and pedestrians. Everyday 110,000 New Yorkers ride bikes; this is up from 75,000 ten years ago. “And, there are hundreds of thousands of people who would regularly bicycle if they felt safe on city streets and had a safe, indoor place to park their bikes,” White added.

Research shows that the more bicyclists there are in a city, the safer it is to bicycle there. New Yorkers should not have to pedal in mass bicycle rides to feel safe on city streets.

Because New York is a dense and flat city, it could be ideal for biking—some neighborhoods are already teeming with bicyclists. But everyday, dangerous access to bridges and greenway paths, drivers who endanger and disrespect bike riders and the world’s most tenacious bike thieves thwart hundreds of thousands of would-be bikers.

To improve bicyclist safety and encourage bicycling, the City of New York needs to:

• Make greenway and bridge paths access safe and convenient.
• Pass legislation requiring all buildings to allow tenants to bring their bicycles inside.
• Ban cars from the loop drives in Central and Prospect Park.

As for Friday, September 24: the over-extended NYPD has its hands full dealing with a massive event with no professed leaders. In any event, the City should be mindful that mass arrests of bicyclists and bike confiscations could deter many of the city’s 110,000 regular bikers from their daily riding.

Transportation Alternatives does not organize Critical Mass bicycle rides.

See www.transalt.org for information on NYC cycling and advocacy, including laws, maps and bridge, greenway and transit information.