An appellate courtroom decide has quickly blocked town from eradicating the Bedford Avenue protected bike lane.
Photograph by Lloyd Mitchell
An appellate decide on Tuesday halted town’s plans to take away a part of the protected bike lane on Bedford Avenue.
The choice got here in response to an enchantment filed by advocacy group Transportation Alternate options and native Baruch Herzfeld, whose lawsuit towards town and Mayor Eric Adams was tossed by a Brooklyn Supreme Court docket decide final week.
A short lived restraining order issued hours earlier than building was set to start on July 15 blocks town from “removing or modifying the parking-protected bicycle lane on Bedford Avenue between Willoughby Avenue and Flushing Avenue” till a decide points a choice on the enchantment.
The lane is at the moment protected by a lane of parked automobiles. Photograph by Lloyd Mitchell
“The bulldozers might be ready to destroy the Bedford Avenue safety improvements, but the Adams administration is going to have to spend their night preparing their legal case, not ripping out a critical safety project and central Brooklyn’s only protected bike lane,” stated Transportation Alternate options Govt Director Ben Furnas, in an announcement. “The fight to save the Bedford Avenue safety improvements continues, and we won’t back down until everyone can get home safely.”
Mayor Eric Adams abruptly introduced that he would take away the parking-protected bike lane on a three-block stretch of Bedford Avenue in favor of a non-protected painted lane final month, citing issues of safety and neighborhood considerations. Advocates and native politicians slammed the choice as harmful and unlawful, and Choose Carolyn Walker-Diallo issued an analogous non permanent restraining order on June 18. However, final week, Walker-Diallo ended the TRO when she dominated in favor of the Adams administration, saying its choices for eradicating the lane had been “rational” and that for the reason that parking-protected bike lane can be swapped with a painted bike lane, it counted as a “modification,” not a removing.
Building was set to start on the night of July 15.
“After several dangerous incidents — many of which involved children — the Adams administration listened to the community’s concerns and moved to reconfigure the bike lane to its original model while still maintaining safety measures,” Metropolis Corridor spokesperson Sophia Askari stated in an announcement. “Last week’s ruling clearly affirmed that the reconfiguration of this bike lane is fully within our legal authority. This unnecessary appeal will only delay easing the safety concerns plaguing Williamsburg parents. We will revisit this matter in court, where we are confident we will prevail yet again.”
Adams abruptly introduced his resolution to take away the lane final month. Photograph courtesy of Ed Reed/Mayoral Pictures Workplace
In keeping with StreetsBlog, town has per week to oppose the order. After that, the decide can determine whether or not or to not block building at some stage in the case.
A number of youngsters have been hit by cyclists within the bike lane between Flushing and Willoughby avenues because it was put in late final yr. Video of a number of of these incidents exhibits youngsters exiting buses or automobiles parked midblock and coming into the bike lane between parked automobiles. Per courtroom paperwork, the Division of Transportation put in designated bus loading zones in an effort to forestall these incidents, however they had been continuously blocked by parked automobiles or ignored altogether.
For the reason that bike lane was accomplished, accidents on Bedford Avenue between Flushing and DeKalb avenues are down 47%, courtroom paperwork present. DOT believed that eradicating the protected lane would make the road much less secure and will open town to “potential legal consequences for going back to a known less-safe design,” however Adams opted to maneuver ahead anyway.
Greater than 200 New Yorkers vowed to sue town in the event that they or a liked one are injured on Bedford Avenue after the removing of the protected bike lane.
