Cycling in New York City
Encyclopedia
New York City
offers a mix of favorable cycling conditions — dense urban proximities, short distances and relatively flat terrain — along with significant cycling challenges: congested roadways with stop and go traffic, a sometimes unsympathetic regulatory environment, and streets with heavy pedestrian activity. The city has a large cycling population including utility cyclists
such as delivery and messenger services, cycling club
s for recreational cyclists and, increasingly, commuters
.
While New York had developed the country's first bike path in 1894, and recent trends place the city "at the forefront of a national trend to make bicycling viable and safe" — competing ideas of urban transportation have led to conflict as well as ongoing efforts to balance the needs of of cyclists, pedestrians and cars.
, Ocean Parkway
, and elsewhere. New York didn't produce as many bicycles as other cities, so imported many from elsewhere, including Freehold Township, New Jersey
. As a spectator sport, six-day racing
was popular and spurred the building of velodrome
s in suburbs including Washington Heights, Manhattan
, and Jersey City, New Jersey
. Weekly races were held in suburban roads, including Pelham Parkway, Bronx
. The biggest races were in inner city
locations, notably at the original Madison Square Garden
which had been designed for cycle racing and at the time was located adjacent to Madison Square
. The Olympic sport, Madison Racing
, is named after cycle races that became popular at Madison Square Gardens.
Several of the middle 20th century parkway
projects of Robert Moses
included bike paths. However, when more people could afford cars, bicycling declined and the bikeways fell into disrepair. New bridges connecting Queens
to The Bronx
, or Brooklyn
to Staten Island
, did not provide for bicycles or pedestrians.
Late in the century, bicycling resurged. A narrow, physically separated bike lane in Sixth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan had little success and was eliminated but bike lanes on major bridges were created, refurbished, or improved, and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
and other agencies created the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
and other land bikeways.
deliveries over short distances, sometimes using mountain bike
s outfitted a lock box (for money), a wide carrier for larger loads such as pizza or other accessories. Electric bicycle
s are increasingly used for this service, their illegality being sporadically enforced. Bicycle messenger
s use narrower wheels to carry lighter loads short distances. Specialized cargo bicycles and tricycle
s carry heavier loads.
Pedicab
s became commonplace at the turn of the 21st century, offering novel travel over short distances, including guided tours of Central Park
. In April, 2007 the New York City Council
voted to limit the number of pedicabs to 325. A court overturned the limit, later regulatory efforts concentrated on requirements for insurance and safety equipment and in April 2011, new legislation tightened parking regulations and capped pedicab licenses at 850.
In 2007 the Department studied the prospects of a bicycle sharing system and announced in 2011 that kiosks would be built for the service to begin in 2012 with 10,000 bikes at 600 stations operated by Alta Bikeshare, operators of Capital Bikeshare
and similar schemes in other US cities.
s connect most neighborhoods. Those in parks are Greenways, segregated from traffic. The Hudson River Greenway is so heavily used that it requires separation of the bikeway from pedestrians. Other parts of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
and the Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
are less continuously segregated. A Greenway runs through Pelham Bay Park
and across the Bronx
along Mosholu Parkway
to Van Cortlandt Park
where it connects to the South County Trailway
. Others include foreshoreway
s along the north shore of Jamaica Bay
, the south shores of Little Neck Bay
and Flushing Bay and other locations.
As of February 2009, about 170 miles (260 km) of painted lanes run in streets, and the network is growing. Most street bike lanes are simply marked with paint
and signage, and lie between a parking lane and a traffic lane. They are often blocked by trucks unloading and by double parked
cars. A few, as in Tillary Street, Brooklyn, replace the parking lane and are separated from motor traffic by concrete barriers. The 8th and 9th Avenue bike lanes in Chelsea, Manhattan
were rebuilt in late 2008 to lie between the curb and a new parking lane, and are expected to provide more safety. Similar layouts were used on 1st and 2d Avenues in 2010, and on Columbus Avenue in 2011.
On three Saturdays in August 2008, a route on the East Side of Manhattan from Brooklyn Bridge to 72nd Street along Lafayette Street
, Park Avenue and other streets was cleared of motor traffic to allow easy non-motorised use as an experiment called "Summerstreets". It was repeated in 2009 and became an annual event, including August 6, 13 and 20, 2011.
From mid-August 2008, two lanes of Broadway
between 42nd Street and Herald Square
were transformed into a pedestrian plaza and bike path.
Appreciation of the new bike lanes in streets was not unanimous. A group in Park Slope sued in March 2011 to remove a new bike lane.
and Prospect Park
, ban or restrict vehicles during certain weekday hours and all weekend
to promote bicycling. A company operates bike rental
stations in several city parks and Local bike shop
s also rent them, especially in areas of tourism
. Less formal operators work on street corners or out of the back of a truck or in parking garages. Additional services include paid guided tours.
Several organizations, including Five Borough Bicycle Club and Bike New York
, conduct tours
every weekend. Most are day trips for no fee; some larger or overnight tours require payment. New York Cycle Club and others specialize in fitness and speed. Bicycle track races run most summer weekends in Kissena Park
and elsewhere. Road races are held less frequently.
New York City Department of Transportation
distributes a free and annually updated bike map through bike shops. The map shows Class 1 physically segregated Greenway
s in green, and street routes in other colors. It shows the locations and names of bike shops and points of touristic interest. Shops that rent bikes
are shown in red.
over Brooklyn Bridge
and along the Hudson or elsewhere in good weather. In 2008 the NYC Department of Transportation released a "screenline count report" suggesting that commuter cycling had more than doubled since the turn of the century.
For mixed-mode commuting
most suburban commuter rail stations provide free parking in racks, and some have bicycle locker
s for security. Regulations on bicycles on trains vary by railroad and time of day. Bikes are allowed on New York City Subway
s at all hours, though crowding makes them difficult to handle. Rules against fastening bikes to subway property, including fences around street stairs, are enforced more rigorously than those concerning lampposts and other street furniture
. Municipal bicycle stand
s are installed in many neighborhoods. Most are simple "bike staples" but a few, including one each at the northwest ends of Pulaski Bridge
and Union Square
are larger, with a roof. More are planned.
Folding bicycle
s, which often allow parking in a workplace or home closet where there isn't room for a full sized bike, became increasingly popular early in the 21st century. European city bike
s from the Netherlands, though lacking this virtue, became a lesser trend in 2008.
In 2009, a local law created by the New York City Council
went into effect, requiring commercial buildings with freight elevators to allow employees to transport their bikes on them up to tenant floors. The purpose of the bill was to allow access to indoor storage spaces to encourage commuting by cycling. The City Council also created another local law in 2009 requiring many off-street parking facilities to replace some of their spaces for vehicles with bicycle racks. So far there has been limited demand by cyclists for paid off-street bicycle parking at these garages and lots.
Transportation Alternatives
promotes bicycle commuting and bicycle friendly facilities to lessen the impact of cars on urban life.
and cyclists must be vigilant for motorists and passengers unaware of the law forbidding opening a door into a traffic lane in a way to interfere with traffic, including bicycles. Dooring produces injuries, broken bones and sometimes death.
Approximately 20 cyclists are killed most years, usually by collision with a moving motor vehicle (including those who are knocked under wheels by a door). Some fatality locations are marked by white-painted ghost bike
s. Traffic accidents kill approximately 160 pedestrian
s per year (about half as many as 20 years ago) and a lesser number inside cars.
monthly rides in New York have turned into a conflict between the NYPD and bike riders. On 27 August 2004 during the Republican National Convention, more than 400 riders were arrested for 'disrupting traffic'. The arrests, thought to preemptive action against protests during the convention, spawned law suits and courts have ruled that the rides are legal (c.f.). Other rides were also followed by arrests, tickets though the NYPD has been content to leave alone.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
offers a mix of favorable cycling conditions — dense urban proximities, short distances and relatively flat terrain — along with significant cycling challenges: congested roadways with stop and go traffic, a sometimes unsympathetic regulatory environment, and streets with heavy pedestrian activity. The city has a large cycling population including utility cyclists
Utility cycling
Utility cycling encompasses any cycling not done primarily for fitness, recreation such as cycle touring, or sport such as cycle racing, but simply as a means of transport...
such as delivery and messenger services, cycling club
Cycling club
A cycling club is a society for cyclists. It can be local or national, general or specialised. The Cyclists' Touring Club, CTC) in the United Kingdom is a national association; i-Team and are internet clubs; the Tricycle Association, Tandem Club and the Veterans Time Trial Association, for those...
s for recreational cyclists and, increasingly, commuters
Bicycle commuting
Bicycle commuting is the use of a bicycle to travel from home to a place of work or study — in contrast to the use of a bicycle for sport, recreation or touring....
.
While New York had developed the country's first bike path in 1894, and recent trends place the city "at the forefront of a national trend to make bicycling viable and safe" — competing ideas of urban transportation have led to conflict as well as ongoing efforts to balance the needs of of cyclists, pedestrians and cars.
History
The bicycle boom of the late 19th century had a strong impact on New York area, and the City of Brooklyn was especially responsive, providing accommodation in Eastern ParkwayEastern Parkway (Brooklyn)
Eastern Parkway is a major boulevard that runs through a portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The road begins at Grand Army Plaza and extends east, running parallel to Atlantic Avenue, along the crest of the moraine that separates northern from southern Long Island, to Ralph Avenue...
, Ocean Parkway
Ocean Parkway (Brooklyn)
Ocean Parkway is a broad boulevard in the west central portion of the borough of Brooklyn in New York City.-Route description:Ocean Parkway extends over a distance of about five miles , running almost north to south from the vicinity of Prospect Park to Brighton Beach...
, and elsewhere. New York didn't produce as many bicycles as other cities, so imported many from elsewhere, including Freehold Township, New Jersey
Freehold Township, New Jersey
Freehold Township is a Township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 36,184. Freehold Township was first formed on October 31, 1693, and was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21,...
. As a spectator sport, six-day racing
Six-day racing
A six or six-day is a track cycling race that lasts six days. Six-day races started in Britain, spread to many regions of the world, were brought to their modern style in the United States and are now mainly a European event. Initially, individuals competed alone, the winner being the individual...
was popular and spurred the building of velodrome
Velodrome
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights...
s in suburbs including Washington Heights, Manhattan
Washington Heights, Manhattan
Washington Heights is a New York City neighborhood in the northern reaches of the borough of Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest point on Manhattan island by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, to defend the area from the...
, and Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
. Weekly races were held in suburban roads, including Pelham Parkway, Bronx
Pelham Parkway, Bronx
Pelham Parkway is primarily a residential neighborhood geographically located in the center of the Bronx borough of New York City in the United States. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 11. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: Pelham Parkway to the...
. The biggest races were in inner city
Inner city
The inner city is the central area of a major city or metropolis. In the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland, the term is often applied to the lower-income residential districts in the city centre and nearby areas...
locations, notably at the original Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
which had been designed for cycle racing and at the time was located adjacent to Madison Square
Madison Square
Madison Square is formed by the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway at 23rd Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The square was named for James Madison, fourth President of the United States and the principal author of the United States Constitution.The focus of the square is...
. The Olympic sport, Madison Racing
Madison (cycling)
The madison is a team event in track cycling, named after the first Madison Square Garden in New York, and known as the "American race" in French and in Italian and Spanish as Americana.-History:...
, is named after cycle races that became popular at Madison Square Gardens.
Several of the middle 20th century parkway
Parkway
The term parkway has several distinct principal meanings and numerous synonyms around the world, for either a type of landscaped area or a type of road.Type of landscaped area:...
projects of Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
included bike paths. However, when more people could afford cars, bicycling declined and the bikeways fell into disrepair. New bridges connecting Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
to The Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
, or Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
to Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, did not provide for bicycles or pedestrians.
Late in the century, bicycling resurged. A narrow, physically separated bike lane in Sixth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan had little success and was eliminated but bike lanes on major bridges were created, refurbished, or improved, and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
The City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation is the department of government of the City of New York responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecological diversity of the city's natural areas, and furnishing recreational opportunities for city's...
and other agencies created the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a foreshoreway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks. It is separated from motor traffic, and many sections also separate pedestrians from cyclists...
and other land bikeways.
Utility cycling
Delivery bikes are commonly used in New York for fast foodFast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
deliveries over short distances, sometimes using mountain bike
Mountain bike
A mountain bike or mountain bicycle is a bicycle created for off-road cycling. This activity includes traversing of rocks and washouts, and steep declines,...
s outfitted a lock box (for money), a wide carrier for larger loads such as pizza or other accessories. Electric bicycle
Electric bicycle
An electric bicycle, also known as an e-bike, is a bicycle with an electric motor used to power the vehicle. Electric bicycles typically cost between and , use rechargeable batteries and can travel up to...
s are increasingly used for this service, their illegality being sporadically enforced. Bicycle messenger
Bicycle messenger
Bicycle messengers are people who work for courier companies carrying and delivering items by bicycle. Bicycle messengers are most often found in the central business districts of metropolitan areas...
s use narrower wheels to carry lighter loads short distances. Specialized cargo bicycles and tricycle
Tricycle
A tricycle is a three-wheeled vehicle. While tricycles are often associated with the small three-wheeled vehicles used by pre-school-age children, they are also used by adults for a variety of purposes. In the United States and Canada, adult-sized tricycles are used primarily by older persons for...
s carry heavier loads.
Pedicab
Cycle rickshaw
The cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport; it is also known by a variety of other names such as velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, becak, trisikad, or trishaw or, simply, rickshaw which also refers to auto rickshaws, and the, now uncommon, rickshaws pulled by a person on foot...
s became commonplace at the turn of the 21st century, offering novel travel over short distances, including guided tours of Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
. In April, 2007 the New York City Council
New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of the City of New York. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The Council serves as a check against the mayor in a "strong" mayor-council government model. The council monitors performance of city agencies and...
voted to limit the number of pedicabs to 325. A court overturned the limit, later regulatory efforts concentrated on requirements for insurance and safety equipment and in April 2011, new legislation tightened parking regulations and capped pedicab licenses at 850.
In 2007 the Department studied the prospects of a bicycle sharing system and announced in 2011 that kiosks would be built for the service to begin in 2012 with 10,000 bikes at 600 stations operated by Alta Bikeshare, operators of Capital Bikeshare
Capital Bikeshare
Capital Bikeshare is a bicycle sharing system that serves Washington, D.C., and Arlington County, Virginia. The stations and bicycles are owned by the participating local governments and operated in a public-private partnership with Alta Bike Share, Inc...
and similar schemes in other US cities.
Bikeways
Most cycling is in the same lanes as motor traffic, since most streets provide no separate facilities for bicycles. However, bikewayBikeway
A Bikeway is a route, way or path which in some manner is specifically designed and /or designated for bicycle travel.-See also:*Bicycle boulevard*Bicycle trail*Bicycle transportation engineering*Foreshoreway*Greenway* List of cycleways...
s connect most neighborhoods. Those in parks are Greenways, segregated from traffic. The Hudson River Greenway is so heavily used that it requires separation of the bikeway from pedestrians. Other parts of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a foreshoreway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks. It is separated from motor traffic, and many sections also separate pedestrians from cyclists...
and the Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
The Brooklyn-Queens Greenway is a bicycling and pedestrian path connecting parks and roads in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, connecting Coney Island in the south to Fort Totten in the north, on Long Island Sound...
are less continuously segregated. A Greenway runs through Pelham Bay Park
Pelham Bay Park
Pelham Bay Park, located in the northeast corner of the New York City borough of The Bronx and extending partially into Westchester County, is at the largest public park in New York City. The section of the park within New York City's borders is more than three times the size of Manhattan's...
and across the Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
along Mosholu Parkway
Mosholu Parkway
The Mosholu Parkway is a hybrid freeway-standard parkway and grade-level roadway in the New York City borough of the Bronx, constructed from 1935 to 1937 as part of the roadway network created under Robert Moses...
to Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park
Van Cortlandt Park is a park located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the fourth largest park in New York City, behind Pelham Bay Park, Flushing Meadows Park and Staten Island Greenbelt....
where it connects to the South County Trailway
South County Trailway
The South County Trailway is a long trail stretching from Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx to Elmsford, New York. Construction started in the 1990s and was completed in 2011.- Bronx and Yonkers :...
. Others include foreshoreway
Foreshoreway
A foreshoreway is a type of greenway that provides a public right of way along the edge of a waterbody.Foreshoreways are usually focused on sustainable behaviours and hence are a common facility for sustainable transport. The terminology was derived to assist to avoid the perception of a pavement...
s along the north shore of Jamaica Bay
Jamaica Bay
Jamaica Bay is located on the southwestern tip of Long Island in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, New York City, and the town of Hempstead, New York/hamlet of Inwood...
, the south shores of Little Neck Bay
Little Neck Bay
Little Neck Bay is an embayment in western Long Island, New York, off Long Island Sound. Little Neck Bay forms the western boundary of the Great Neck Peninsula, the eastern boundary of which is Manhasset Bay. The political boundary between Nassau County and the borough of Queens runs through the bay...
and Flushing Bay and other locations.
Road surface marking
Road surface marking is any kind of device or material that is used on a road surface in order to convey official information. They can also be applied in other facilities used by vehicles to mark parking spaces or designate areas for other uses....
and signage, and lie between a parking lane and a traffic lane. They are often blocked by trucks unloading and by double parked
Double parking
-Parking parallel to a car already parked at the curb:"Double parking" can refer to the usually illegal practice of parking a vehicle to the side of a row of vehicles that is already parked next to the curb...
cars. A few, as in Tillary Street, Brooklyn, replace the parking lane and are separated from motor traffic by concrete barriers. The 8th and 9th Avenue bike lanes in Chelsea, Manhattan
Chelsea, Manhattan
Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The district's boundaries are roughly 14th Street to the south, 30th Street to the north, the western boundary of the Ladies' Mile Historic District – which lies between the Avenue of the Americas and...
were rebuilt in late 2008 to lie between the curb and a new parking lane, and are expected to provide more safety. Similar layouts were used on 1st and 2d Avenues in 2010, and on Columbus Avenue in 2011.
On three Saturdays in August 2008, a route on the East Side of Manhattan from Brooklyn Bridge to 72nd Street along Lafayette Street
Lafayette Street (Manhattan)
Lafayette Street is a major north-south street in New York City's Lower Manhattan, which runs roughly parallel to Broadway to the west. Originally, the part of the street below Houston Street was called Elm Place....
, Park Avenue and other streets was cleared of motor traffic to allow easy non-motorised use as an experiment called "Summerstreets". It was repeated in 2009 and became an annual event, including August 6, 13 and 20, 2011.
From mid-August 2008, two lanes of Broadway
Broadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
between 42nd Street and Herald Square
Herald Square
Herald Square is formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue and 34th Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Named for the New York Herald, a now-defunct newspaper formerly headquartered there, it also gives its name to the surrounding area...
were transformed into a pedestrian plaza and bike path.
Appreciation of the new bike lanes in streets was not unanimous. A group in Park Slope sued in March 2011 to remove a new bike lane.
Recreational
Some parks, including Central ParkCentral Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
and Prospect Park
Prospect Park (Brooklyn)
Prospect Park is a 585-acre public park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn located between Park Slope, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Kensington, Windsor Terrace and Flatbush Avenue, Grand Army Plaza and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden...
, ban or restrict vehicles during certain weekday hours and all weekend
Workweek
The workweek and weekend are those complementary parts of the week devoted to labour and rest respectively. The legal working week , or workweek , is the part of the seven-day week devoted to labor. In most Western countries it is Monday to Friday. The weekend comprises the two traditionally...
to promote bicycling. A company operates bike rental
Bike rental
A bike rental or bike hire business is a bike shop or other business that rents bikes for short periods of time for a fee...
stations in several city parks and Local bike shop
Local bike shop
A local bike shop or local bicycle shop is a small business specializing in bicycle sale, maintenance and parts. The expression distinguishes small bicycle shops from large chains and mail-order or online vendors is abbreviated LBS...
s also rent them, especially in areas of tourism
Tourism in New York City
Tourism in New York City includes nearly 47 million foreign and American tourists each year. Major destinations include the Empire State Building, Ellis Island, Broadway theatre productions, museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other tourist attractions including Central Park,...
. Less formal operators work on street corners or out of the back of a truck or in parking garages. Additional services include paid guided tours.
Several organizations, including Five Borough Bicycle Club and Bike New York
Bike New York
Bike New York is an organization based in New York City that encourages cycling and bicycle safety. They are best known for producing the Five Boro Bike Tour, the largest recreational cycling event in the United States. The Tour, which occurs on the first Sunday of May every year, takes 30,000...
, conduct tours
Bicycle touring
Bicycle touring is cycling over long distances – prioritizing pleasure and endurance over utility or speed. Touring can range from single day 'supported' rides — e.g., rides to benefit charities — where provisions are available to riders at stops along the route, to multi-day...
every weekend. Most are day trips for no fee; some larger or overnight tours require payment. New York Cycle Club and others specialize in fitness and speed. Bicycle track races run most summer weekends in Kissena Park
Kissena Park
Kissena Park is a large park located in the neighborhood of Flushing in the New York City borough of Queens, along Kissena Creek which formerly flowed into the Flushing River. It is bordered on the west by Kissena Boulevard; on the north by Rose, Oak, Underhill, and Lithonia Avenues; on the east...
and elsewhere. Road races are held less frequently.
New York City Department of Transportation
New York City Department of Transportation
The New York City Department of Transportation is responsible for the management of much of New York City's transportation infrastructure...
distributes a free and annually updated bike map through bike shops. The map shows Class 1 physically segregated Greenway
Greenway
-People:* Barney Greenway , British death metal vocalist* Brian Greenway , Canadian guitarist and vocalist* Chad Greenway , American football player* Francis Greenway , Australian architect...
s in green, and street routes in other colors. It shows the locations and names of bike shops and points of touristic interest. Shops that rent bikes
Bike rental
A bike rental or bike hire business is a bike shop or other business that rents bikes for short periods of time for a fee...
are shown in red.
Commuting
Many New Yorkers live less than a dozen miles or 20 km from their job, and can be seen bicycle commutingBicycle commuting
Bicycle commuting is the use of a bicycle to travel from home to a place of work or study — in contrast to the use of a bicycle for sport, recreation or touring....
over Brooklyn Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River...
and along the Hudson or elsewhere in good weather. In 2008 the NYC Department of Transportation released a "screenline count report" suggesting that commuter cycling had more than doubled since the turn of the century.
For mixed-mode commuting
Mixed-mode commuting
Mixed-mode commuting refers to the practice of using two or more modes of transportation. The goal of mixed-mode commuting is often to combine the strengths of various transportation options.-Mass transit:...
most suburban commuter rail stations provide free parking in racks, and some have bicycle locker
Bicycle locker
A bicycle locker or bike box is a locker / box in which a single bicycle can be placed and locked in. They are usually provided at places where numerous cyclists need bike parking for extended times , yet where the bikes might otherwise get damaged or stolen .Bike boxes are considered the highest...
s for security. Regulations on bicycles on trains vary by railroad and time of day. Bikes are allowed on New York City Subway
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit...
s at all hours, though crowding makes them difficult to handle. Rules against fastening bikes to subway property, including fences around street stairs, are enforced more rigorously than those concerning lampposts and other street furniture
Street furniture
Street furniture is a collective term for objects and pieces of equipment installed on streets and roads for various purposes, including traffic barriers,...
. Municipal bicycle stand
Bicycle stand
A bicycle stand,also called a bike rack, is a device to which bicycles may be securely attached. It may be free standing or securely attached to the ground or some stationary object such as a building. Indoor bike racks are commonly used for private bicycle parking, while outdoor bike racks are...
s are installed in many neighborhoods. Most are simple "bike staples" but a few, including one each at the northwest ends of Pulaski Bridge
Pulaski Bridge
The Pulaski Bridge in New York City connects Long Island City in Queens to Greenpoint in Brooklyn over Newtown Creek. It was named after Polish military commander and American Revolutionary War fighter Kazimierz Pułaski because of the large Polish-American population in Greenpoint...
and Union Square
Union Square (New York City)
Union Square is a public square in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.It is an important and historic intersection, located where Broadway and the former Bowery Road – now Fourth Avenue – came together in the early 19th century; its name celebrates neither the...
are larger, with a roof. More are planned.
Folding bicycle
Folding bicycle
A folding bicycle is a bicycle designed to fold into a compact form, facilitating transport and storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings and workplaces or onto public transportation or more easily stored in compact living quarters or aboard a car, boat or plane...
s, which often allow parking in a workplace or home closet where there isn't room for a full sized bike, became increasingly popular early in the 21st century. European city bike
European city bike
A European city bike, or simply city bike is a bicycle designed for frequent short, moderately paced rides through relatively flat urban areas...
s from the Netherlands, though lacking this virtue, became a lesser trend in 2008.
In 2009, a local law created by the New York City Council
New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of the City of New York. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The Council serves as a check against the mayor in a "strong" mayor-council government model. The council monitors performance of city agencies and...
went into effect, requiring commercial buildings with freight elevators to allow employees to transport their bikes on them up to tenant floors. The purpose of the bill was to allow access to indoor storage spaces to encourage commuting by cycling. The City Council also created another local law in 2009 requiring many off-street parking facilities to replace some of their spaces for vehicles with bicycle racks. So far there has been limited demand by cyclists for paid off-street bicycle parking at these garages and lots.
Transportation Alternatives
Transportation Alternatives
Transportation Alternatives is a non-profit organization in New York City which seeks to change New York City's transportation priorities to encourage and increase non-polluting, quiet, city-friendly travel and decrease private car use...
promotes bicycle commuting and bicycle friendly facilities to lessen the impact of cars on urban life.
Laws and rules
A bicycle is considered a vehicle (with the exception that no license is required) in the State of New York and bicyclists follow traffic regulations. Cyclists must move in the direction of traffic, must use hand signals, must only wear headphones in one ear, must not ride on sidewalks, and must use lights at night.Dangers and annoyances
Being doored (to collide with the door of a car unexpectedly opened) is a prominent hazard. Many painted bike lanes run in the door zoneDoor zone
The door zone is the space spanning about four feet from the sides of parallel parked cars. It is hazardous to ride a bicycle or motorcycle in a door zone because if a door is suddenly opened, the cyclist must either crash into it , brake suddenly, or swerve into the adjacent lane of traffic...
and cyclists must be vigilant for motorists and passengers unaware of the law forbidding opening a door into a traffic lane in a way to interfere with traffic, including bicycles. Dooring produces injuries, broken bones and sometimes death.
Approximately 20 cyclists are killed most years, usually by collision with a moving motor vehicle (including those who are knocked under wheels by a door). Some fatality locations are marked by white-painted ghost bike
Ghost bike
A ghost bike or ghostcycle is a bicycle set up as a roadside memorial in a place where a cyclist has been killed or severely injured...
s. Traffic accidents kill approximately 160 pedestrian
Pedestrian
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians. In modern times, the term mostly refers to someone walking on a road or footpath, but this was not the case...
s per year (about half as many as 20 years ago) and a lesser number inside cars.
Critical Mass Ride and the NYPD
Critical MassCritical Mass
Critical Mass is a cycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities around the world. The ride was originally founded in 1992 in San Francisco. The purpose of Critical Mass is not usually formalized beyond the direct action of meeting at a set location and time and...
monthly rides in New York have turned into a conflict between the NYPD and bike riders. On 27 August 2004 during the Republican National Convention, more than 400 riders were arrested for 'disrupting traffic'. The arrests, thought to preemptive action against protests during the convention, spawned law suits and courts have ruled that the rides are legal (c.f.). Other rides were also followed by arrests, tickets though the NYPD has been content to leave alone.
External links
- 5 Borough Bicycle Club Touring
- New York Cycle Club Speed
- Kissena Cycling Club Track racing
- Fast & fabulous
- New York City bike maps
- Ride the City, a Google MapsGoogle MapsGoogle Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
API that allows bicycle route planning in the five boroughs. - Biking Rules! - A New Street Code for NYC Cyclists
- Central Park bicycle rentals
- NYC bike rentals
- Time's Up! Direct Action Environmental Group
- Bike Blog NYC Urban Bike Culture in NYC