What: Short bike ride with cycling advocates and City Commissioners followed by press conference announcing Bike Month NYC 2008

When/Where: Wednesday, May 7th, 8:30am (bike ride beginning at 9th Avenue and 23rd Street), 8:45am (press conference at 9th Avenue and 14th Street pedestrian plaza)

Reporters are welcome to join for the bike ride (additional bikes available) or meet with riders at 14th Street.

Today City Council will vote to make the injudicious Stipulated Fine Program official city law.

Intro 637, by Council Members Yassky, Weprin and Felder, will cement the Department of Finance's unfair practice of deeply discounting parking violation fines for commercial fleet operators that agree to waive their rights to contest parking tickets.

In aiming to "reduce private auto use" and grant New Yorkers greener transportation options through collaborations with communities, the DOT's new Strategic Plan represents a long overdue departure from decades of top-down planning and car-centric priorities.

Even though New York City has 8 million daily transit riders and 67% of voters support congestion pricing, this critical reform was quashed in a closed conference room in Albany. That our legislators allowed $354 million in federal transit aid to turn to dust, and refused an open vote on pricing is an enormous setback in the fight to curb the enormous costs of traffic congestion.

Tomorrow, New York City Council will vote on the Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety Act, Introduction 567-A. If approved, the New York City Department of Transportation would be required to annually:

• identify the twenty most dangerous intersections based on their cumulative crash count
• inspect and analyze the hazards at these locations
• recommend preventative countermeasures to be applied at these locations and take steps to implement them
• report all of the above to city council, the Mayor and community boards
Subtitle: 
New York City is poised to prevent scores of injuries and save dozens of lives each year with a new pedestrian and bicyclist safety bill that would mandate analysis of the most dangerous intersections and the application of preventative countermeasures.
Release Date: 
03/11/2008
Press Release Contact: 
Wiley Norvell
PDF Version: 
2008/0311pedestrian

I am here today on behalf of Transportation Alternatives, New York City’s advocates for bicyclists and pedestrians, to express our strong support for making West Street in lower Manhattan a wide, at-grade boulevard with pedestrian-friendly sidewalks lined with tall shady trees on both sides and attractive stores and buildings that front on the east side of the street.

Foot and bicycle access to New York City's East River Bridges has hit an all-time low, say pedestrian and cycling advocates. The recent closing of the Williamsburg Bridge walkway, combined with the City's policy of turning the Queensboro Bridge's bike and foot path over to auto traffic every week-night, is thwarting non-motorized passage to Manhattan to the worst extent in recent memory, according to Transportation Alternatives, a 1500-member NYC bicycling-pedestrian advocacy group.

Today at 6:45 PM, as hundreds of cyclists rallied in support, 5 members of Transportation Alternatives were arrested for blocking automobile traffic during a demonstration at the intersection of 42nd St. and 6th Ave. Among those detained were Transportation Alternatives President, Ann Sullivan, and Executive Director, Jon Orcutt.

Demonstrators carried signs saying "NYPD and DOT, DO YOUR JOB," and "NYC TO WALKERS AND CYCLISTS * DROP DEAD."

John Kaehny, Campaign Coordinator of Transportation Alternatives, and one of those arrested, stated.

Families from all over the city, will join together to speak out about the death and danger on New York City's streets. They will share their sorrow, and describe how their lives were tragically altered, but will also implore the Mayor and Police to start protecting New Yorkers from the motoring menace on the streets.