Bicycle Blueprint - Chapter 4: Street Design

Introduction

NYC Cycling
1. NYC Bike Policy
2. State of NYC Cycling
3. Cyclists & Streets
“A Bike and a Prayer”

Riding Infrastructure

Street Design
5. Bridges
6. Road Surfaces
7. Greenways
8. Parks
9. Bicycles and Transit
10. Reducing Traffic

Security
11. Bicycle Theft
12. On-Street Parking
13. Indoor Parking

On the Job Cycling
14. Bicycle Messengers
“Fifth, Park & Madison”
15. Freight Cycles
16. Gov't Cycling

Reducing Risks
17. Accidents
“Three Who Died”
18. Air Pollution

Bicycle Education
19. Schools
20. Public Education

Appendices

Chapter 4:
Street Design

Street Design
b) Bike Lanes in NYC
c) Working Bike Lane Systems
d) Bike Lanes for New York City
e) Elements of a NYC Bicycle Lane System
f) Side Streets and Residential Areas — The Need for Traffic Calming
g) Chapter 4 Recommendations
Sidebar: The Lanes That Failed
Figure 4a) Riding Infrastructure
Figure 4b) Suggested Bike Lane Configurations

Street Design

In a report on the potential of bicycling programs to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution, the NYC Dept. of Transportation (DoT) observed:

The current level of bicycle ridership in New York City is not indicative of the potential use of the bicycle mode, but rather indicative of those who are so dedicated to cycling that they are willing to utilize a transportation system that has been shaped for decades without extensive provision for bicycles. [1]

Traffic surveys by Transportation Alternatives and anecdotal evidence suggest that other than young adult males, relatively few New Yorkers are willing to brave current traffic conditions by riding a bike. [2] On-street improvements are essential to encourage more and safer city cycling by women, children and middle-aged and older citizens.

Polls since the 1970s confirm the importance of dedicating space on the street for cyclists. A 1992 Harris poll commissioned by Bicycling magazine found that one-quarter of respondents would bicycle to work if safe bicycle lanes were available. [3] Locally, the 1990 City DoT survey reported in Chapter 2 found that 49% of Manhattan business workers living within 10 miles of work would commute by bike if given “safe bike lanes” and other infrastructural improvements. Transportation Alternatives traffic surveys also found higher volumes of cyclists on 6th Avenue — with its bicycle lane (albeit substandard) — than other avenues. [4] Most research on the subject has found a correlation between ridership levels and the amount of dedicated street space for bicycles.

Read the latest news on this subject.

NOTES:

1. NYC Dept. of Transportation, Improving Manhattan Traffic and Air Quality Conditions: Effectiveness of Bicycle Programs, Sept. 1990. p. 2.
2. In the 1992 Transportation Alternatives midtown traffic survey discussed in Chapter 2, a mere 4% of the bicyclists counted were women. On less frenzied downtown streets surveyed at the same time, 12% of bicyclists were women. Yet according to the Bicycle Federation of America, women account for 55% of Americans who say they have ridden a bike in the past year.
3. Bicycling's 2nd Annual Harris Poll on Bike Commuting, May 18, 1992, reported that of the 46% of adult Americans who rode a bicycle in the previous year, 53% “would sometimes commute to work by bicycle if there were safe, separate designated bike paths to use.” The product of 46% and 53% is 24%, or approximately one-quarter. Zero interest in bike commuting was assumed among non-cyclists — a conservatism.
4. In T.A.'s 1988 midtown traffic survey, bicycle volumes averaged 204 per hour on 6th Avenue, or 37% greater than the 148/hr average for 5th, Madison and Park Avenues. For 1989, the 180/hr volume on 6th Avenue exceeded by 35% the 132/hr average for Madison, 5th, 7th and 8th Avenues.