Transportation Relief Needed For Hurricane Aftermath

Hurricane Sandy has devastated New York City and severely impaired the regional transportation network. With full subway service suspended for the foreseeable future, surface transportation options are more critical than ever to help New Yorkers get around. Since most New Yorkers will be relying on walking, the City should take care to ensure adequate walking capacity on bridges and major streets. In addition, Transportation Alternatives urges the Mayor to implement the following measures to assist stranded New Yorkers and prevent gridlock:

• Emergency Bus Lanes to allow swift transit throughout the City until subway service is restored.
• Emergency Street Reservations exclusively for the safe use of walkers, bikers and emergency vehicles.
• Off-Peak Bridge Biking and Walking Lanes to ensure sufficient safe space for people on foot and bicycle and prevent overcrowding on the bridges.
• Emergency Biking Lanes on well-used routes to enable safe mobility, including coned-off Midtown bike lanes.
• Bike Parking Stations and Temporary Bike Storage in major employment centers in Lower Manhattan including Foley Square, Union Square, Herald Square, Times Square, Washington Square Park and Bryant Park.
• High Occupancy Vehicle Requirements on crossings into the most congested areas of the city.
• Carpool Staging Areas offering parking and passenger pick-up locations in support of drivers sharing rides to meet the HOV requirements.

Transportation Alternatives applauds the emergency responders, City employees and the many other heroes helping New Yorkers in this difficult time. As soon as it is safe and appropriate, T.A. staff will be at key locations providing support services to New Yorkers using bicycle transportation to cope with the disruptions.