A coalition of Astoria residents and enterprise homeowners gathered outdoors the St. Demetrios Greek-American College Tuesday morning to have fun a courtroom ruling ordering the Division of Transportation to halt plans for a protected bike lane alongside thirty first Road.
Queens Supreme Court docket Justice Chereé Buggs issued the ruling on Dec. 5, siding with various native companies and residents who argued that the mile-long bike lane would forestall emergency companies from working at “full capacity” on thirty first Road. Others had raised issues that the infrastructure would negatively impression native companies and create security hazards for college students at St. Demetrios Greek-American College, positioned at 30-03 thirtieth Dr.
The thirty first Road Enterprise Affiliation, which joined the lawsuit towards the DOT, held a press convention outdoors the varsity Dec. 9 to have fun the ruling as a “victory for the residents and businesses of Astoria.” Affiliation President Joseph Mirabella additionally described the ruling as a “victory for commonsense.”
Mirabella addresses the media. Picture byShane O’Brien.
Council Member Joann Ariola, minority chief of the NYC Council Republic Delegation and chair of the Council Committee on Hearth and Emergency Administration, additionally joined Tuesday’s occasion to have fun a victory for the rule of legislation.
Ariola acknowledged that the DOT’s makes an attempt to put in a protected bike lane throughout a mile-long stretch of thirty first Road between Newtown Avenue and thirty sixth Avenue didn’t adhere to Native Legislation 6, which mandates that the DOT should seek the advice of with native firehouses earlier than implementing road design adjustments.
Quite a few elected officers and public transit advocates criticized the ruling, nonetheless, pointing to DOT knowledge naming the stretch as one of the crucial harmful corridors in Queens. Council Member Tiffany Cabán, who represents the world lined by the proposed bike lane, stated the ruling would threaten street security within the neighborhood.
The DOT acknowledged that it’s reviewing the choice and evaluating its subsequent steps.
In her ruling, Buggs cited issues raised by the FDNY after the Hearth Division knowledgeable the DOT in July that the road redesign wouldn’t allow it to function at “full capacity.” The Hearth Division additional warned that the implementation of the redesign would “negatively impact FDNY emergency response and fireground operations, delaying Fire Department personnel and their resources for fire suppression.”
The DOT had insisted that emergency automobiles would be capable of make use of an eight-foot bike lane and a three-foot buffer to achieve the curb and reply to emergencies. Buggs stated the DOT had offered no “concrete rebuttal” to the FDNY’s issues.
Ariola stated Tuesday that Native Legislation 6 had helped shield native residents and be certain that emergency companies may do their jobs.
“The DOT did not comply with the law as written, which meant that had to go to local firehouses and do outreach and get input from those firehouses,” Ariola stated.
At current, vehicles are ceaselessly double-parked alongside thirty first Road, limiting curbside entry. Ariola conceded that situations on the road are “very challenging” for emergency companies however stated the set up of a protected bike lane would have exacerbated these challenges.
“When they’re going to reconfigure a street, they need to know that our firefighters can navigate those streets to reach the homes so that they can save people’s lives,” Ariola stated.
Mirabella, then again, stated the thirty first Road Enterprise Affiliation had requested the DOT to implement different measures to make the hall safer for all street customers, stating that the affiliation had requested the company to put in extra velocity cameras and cut back the street’s velocity restrict to twenty mph. He stated the affiliation didn’t obtain an satisfactory response from the DOT.
Buggs famous the allegations in her Dec. 5 ruling.
Mirabella added that the group has additionally requested the DOT to put in a protected bike lane on a residential hall working parallel to thirty first Road comparable to thirty third Road, the place there are fewer storefronts and fewer visitors.
Buggs additionally dominated that the DOT’s response to issues raised by St. Demetrios College was “insufficient.”
College representatives had acknowledged that the proposed bike lanes would run instantly by drop-off and pick-up zones utilized by mother and father and college students, including that the bike lanes would create “unacceptable risks.”
The DOT had argued that it engaged with the varsity on a number of events to handle these issues, however Buggs dominated that the company had failed to indicate that it had “practically resolved” the core concern.
Adam Wittenstein, a math trainer on the faculty, stated the bike lanes would have created hazardous situations for youngsters being dropped off in school, whereas additionally making a “major blind spot” for the varsity’s parking zone on thirty first Road.
“We are all for safety, but the dangers of this project unfortunately outweighed the benefits,” Wittenstein stated Tuesday. “I happen to be a bicyclist, but I would not use the 31st Street bike lane if built as designed because I don’t find it safe.”
Adam Wittenstein speaks at Tuesday’s press convention. Picture by Shane O’Brien.
Hartley Bernstein, who represented the thirty first Road Enterprise Affiliation within the current legislation go well with, described Buggs’ ruling as an “early Christmas present,” including that it’s important for the DOT to respect the desires of everybody locally.
“While the proposed bike lane was an interest that served one constituency, DOT has to serve all constituencies,” Bernstein stated.
Mirabella, then again, accused the company of creating “unilateral, ill-advised” selections that impression the local people. He referred to as for “true collaboration” between the DOT and the local people going ahead.
Buggs’ ruling has ordered the DOT to halt plans to put in a motorcycle lane on thirty first Road along with giving the company 30 days to take away a piece of the bike lane it had already put in on one aspect of thirty first Road between thirty first Avenue and Broadway.
The DOT put in a small part of the bike lane throughout the summer season. Picture by Shane O’Brien.
Not everybody has welcomed the ruling, nonetheless.
Transportation Alternate options, a non-profit advocating for extra strolling, biking and public transit infrastructure, will maintain an “emergency rally” alongside Cabán in Astoria’s Athens Sq. Park Tuesday night to name on the town to “save the 31st Street safety project.”
Cabán, together with State Sen. Kristen Gonzalez, Meeting Member Jessica González-Rojas and Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, unveiled the Western Queens Road Security Plan in 2023 as a part of a “multi-year planning process” aiming to make Western Queens safer for all street customers. Efforts to put in a protected bike lane on thirty first Road fashioned a part of that security plan.
In an announcement issued to QNS on Monday, Cabán contended that the ruling “puts lives at risk” by eradicating plans for confirmed security measures.
“This project would save lives. It would make our neighborhood safer for every person who walks, bikes, takes the bus, or drives. Astoria has waited too long for basic protections. My office will continue to fight for street safety on 31st St and every street,” Cabán stated in an announcement.
Gonzalez, in the meantime, acknowledged that the ruling would “increase the likelihood of accidents” alongside the hall.
“DOT previously rated the corridor as among the top 10% most dangerous streets for serious injuries in Queens,” Gonzalez stated in an announcement. “Abandoning progress now will only increase the likelihood of accidents.”
The mile-long stretch of thirty first Road is among the many most harmful roads in Queens, based on DOT knowledge, with a complete of 178 accidents recorded on the hall over the five-year interval. DOT knowledge cites “multiple instances” of cyclists getting “doored” – referring to when a bike owner collides with a automotive door that has been opened– whereas over 30% of pedestrian accidents have been attributable to left-turn crashes.
