If the city is serious about reducing air pollution and tackling the climate crisis, then we need to do more to get people out of their cars and onto bicycles and other clean transportation modes, and we can only do that by creating a safe and robust network of protected bike lanes across the city.
NYLCV applauds Councilmember Lincoln Restler for leading the charge and the NYC City Council for passing Intro 417-B, an NYLCV scorecard bill that streamlines the review process for building new protected bike lanes.
The most effective way to reduce transportation emissions is to expand access to and improve infrastructure for alternative modes of transportation such as bicycles, e-bikes, and e-scooters. Unfortunately, the process for approving major transportation projects and any change to bike lanes is long and arduous, requiring unnecessary waiting periods and multiple confusing timelines.
Intro 417-B repeals section 19-187 of the administrative code in order to streamline the Community Board and Council Member notification process for street safety and traffic improvement measures by creating a single, uniform notice process for the NYC Department of Transportation.
“2023 is on track to be one of the deadliest years for cyclists in NYC since 1999; crashes have killed 26 cyclists. Installing new bike lanes faster will help the City build the 250 miles of protected bike lanes by 2026 as required by the NYC Streets Plan,” Councilmember Restler wrote in a social media post following the vote.
Safe and widespread access to micro-mobility options such as biking are crucial to reducing air pollution and meeting our State’s carbon emission goals, and for the City to implement the NYC Streets Plan. That’s why Intro 417-B was an NYLCV Scorecard bill and it’s why we are so thrilled to see it pass the council.
“Every day, New Yorkers make more than 550,000 bike trips,” said Restler. “Each trip helps us reduce the number of cars on the road and combats the climate crisis.”