August 12: Summer Streets Ride, Curbside Composting, Bike Crosstown
Last weekend, we celebrated the return of Summer Streets, as Park Avenue opened to pedestrians, cyclists, skaters, and scooters.
This weekend, we’re leading a guided tour of the route, and we want to see you out there with us. Meet up with our Manhattan and Bronx/Uptown activist committees at the top of the route in East Harlem, and ride down to Astor Place for a post-ride get-together. Along the way, we’ll stop at a few key locations to highlight campaigns TA activists are working on.
While three half-days of car-free streets in Manhattan are nice, we must go way, way further – especially as the city’s Open Streets have dwindled from 83 miles in 2020 to just over 20 today, as the New York Times reported this week.
Our NYC 25x25 vision calls for reclaiming road space currently dedicated to cars and redesigning it to benefit people. Take in all of the car-free Park Avenue you can this weekend, and imagine a redesigned New York City that creates 13 Central Parks’ worth of space for everyone, across all five boroughs.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW
1️⃣ Pedestrian Prom has a new date. Our annual member party will now be held on Thursday, September 15. The event will still take place at Hunter’s Point South in Long Island City, and all tickets purchased prior to the date change will be honored. TA members get a $10 discount, so get your tickets now!
2️⃣ The award for slowest bus route goes to… This week, the Straphangers Campaign and TransitCenter awarded their annual “Pokey and Schleppie” Awards for the city’s slowest and most unreliable bus routes. We won’t spoil the winners for you, but we will say that thanks to your advocacy on the 14th Street PeopleWay, the M14 was out of the running this year.
3️⃣ In the news. Here’s what we’re reading this week:
Big congestion pricing news: The MTA released its environmental assessment. Read more about the plan in THE CITY or Streetsblog, or check out The Guardian, which has an interview with our Executive Director Danny Harris.
Mayor Adams announced a borough-wide curbside composting program for Queens. The program, set to begin October 3, will be the largest composting program in the U.S.
An NPR interview with journalist Jody Rosen looks to solve the mystery of how so many bikes in cities end up underwater.
And finally, TA Executive Director Danny Harris was named to City & State’s Transportation Power 100. Also included on this year’s list was Debbie Marks Kahn, a founding member of Families for Safe Streets.
TWO THINGS TO DO
1️⃣ Park your bike with us at Summer Streets. If you can’t join us for our guided ride this Saturday, we’ll also have bike valet stations at three locations along the route. Swing by the Astor Place, Rose Hill, or Midtown Rest Stops and check out all of the activities in those areas – we’ll be back next week, too!
2️⃣ Register for the Tour de Staten Island. Sneak in one last summertime weekend ride along the coastline with your choice of a 35- or 50-mile route. Register now to explore the “Borough of Parks” on September 18.
ONE ACTION TO TAKE NOW
Get Involved with our Bike Crosstown campaign. The death of 28-year-old cyclist Carling Mott made it ever clearer that the Upper East Side and Upper West Side need safer infrastructure for cyclists. Visit the Bike Crosstown site and sign our petition to the DOT calling for more protected bike lanes. While you’re there, you can also fill out our interest form and community input survey if you’d like to know more about future volunteer opportunities.
Thanks for reading, and hope to see you out there on Saturday!
Ted and the TA team