Open Letter from the NYC Bike Family to Mayor Adams
Dear Mayor Adams,
Traffic violence has killed 26 New Yorkers riding bicycles in 2023 alone — and more than 183 total New Yorkers walking, biking, and driving across New York City this year. This year’s deadly spike in deaths puts New York City on track for the second deadliest year for bike riders in recorded history, and surpasses 200 bike riders dying on our streets since the start of the Vision Zero program in 2014.
We write this letter to demand your attention and action to ensure that no more New Yorkers die on your streets. As a cyclist, you know and understand the risks of simply moving around this city on a bicycle, our streets increasingly have larger and heavier vehicles increasing the danger of riding on a bike lane or navigating the street. As mayor, you know that the City has the proven tools to ensure everyone can move safely around the five boroughs. As members of the NYC Bike Family, we are advocates, educators, social ride leaders, business owners and, most importantly, New Yorkers who want to ride to work or take our kids to school without the constant threat of death or serious injury.
Together, we call on you to treat this public health emergency with the immediate response that it deserves, specifically by fast-tracking the legally mandated NYC Streets Plan, which you funded with $904 million. This plan provides a blueprint of how to move closer to Vision Zero while providing all New Yorkers more affordable, equitable, and sustainable ways to get around our city.
While this plan outlines a hopeful and safe path forward for New York City, we are also gravely concerned that the City continues to miss its goals, and appalled that the administration is actively rolling back essential street improvement projects that have already been approved. Reversing, diminishing, or even just delaying these projects will only cause more death and injuries to families across the five boroughs. Specifically, we call attention to safety projects that have been halted by your office, including McGuinness Boulevard, Bedford Avenue, Ashland and Navy Street, the Underhill Avenue Bike Boulevard, and the Fordham Road busway.
Politics have gotten in the way of safety for far too long. Together we say: Mayor Adams, not one more death on your streets.
On October 11, we will ride together to make our voices loud and clear. We demand safe streets in every neighborhood and urge you to hear the voices of the countless families killed on your streets, whether a father of two biking to the grocery store or a delivery worker making ends meet to deliver someone else’s dinner.
The time to act is now. Please fast track the Streets Plan without additional delay or excuse. Lives depend on it.
Signed,
Danny Harris, Executive Director, Transportation Alternatives
Ligia Gualpa, Executive Director, Workers Justice Project
Hildalyn Colon Hernandez, Deputy Director, New Immigrant Community Empowerment Inc.
Mohamed Attia, Founder, Street Vendor Project
Charles McCorkell, Founder, Bicycle Habitat
Courtney Williams, Founder, The Brown Bike Girl
Andrew Bennett, Founder, Good Co Bike Club & Good Co Cares
Briszeida Bullock, Founder, Bicibellas NYC
Joe Matunis and Tawshawn Edmonds, Facilitators, El Puente Bike Club
Emily Stutts, Mayelly Moreno & Hilda Cohen, Coordinators, Bergen Bike Bus
Casey Ashenhurst, Board President, WE Bike NYC
Melinda Hanson, Founder, Equitable Commute Project
Jon Orcutt, Director of Advocacy, Bike New York
Betsy Plum, Executive Director, Riders Alliance
Peter Kerre, Founder, StreetRiders NYC
Devante Juvanie, Founder , Century Plus Crew
Brendt Barbur, Founding Director, Bicycle Film Festival
Doug Gordon, Founder, Brooklyn Spoke Media
Allan Friedman, President, Five Borough Bike Club
Leora Rosenberg, President, New York Cycle Club
Steve Vaccaro, Founder, Vaccaro Law
Lisa Orman and Sara Lind, Co-Executive Directors, Open Plans
Peter Beadle, Founder, Law Office of Peter W. Beadle
Kevin LaCherra, Organizer, Make McGuinness Safer Coalition
John Tomac, Leader, Bike South Brooklyn
Daelin Fischman, Co-chair, Harbor Ring
Hilda Cohen, Founder, Make Brooklyn Safer & Kidical Mass NYC
Cristina Furlong, Co-Founder, Make Queens Safer
Justin Johnstone, Founder, NYC Bike + Brew
John Kelly, Founder, Eastern Queens Greenway
Mallory Woods, Organizer, Ridgewood Rides
