Construction of protected bike lane, pedestrian
walkway on Queensboro Bridge to begin this year
BY BILL PARRY
The city will begin construction
this year to convert the outer
roadways on the Queensboro
Bridge into a two-way bike lane
and a separate pedestrian-only
walkway.
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced
the project during his
State of the City address, saying
it was time to bring the span,
as well as the Brooklyn Bridge,
into the 21st century and embrace
the future with a radical
new plan.
“We’ll have space on the
bridges devoted solely to clean
transportation, and we’ll create
new bike boulevards in every
borough designed to give bicycles
travel priority and put cyclist
safety first,” de Blasio said.
“These are the kind of changes
that allow us to move out of the
era of fossil fuels and the era
of the automobile, and into a
green future as part of our commitment
to the New York City
Green New Deal.”
The Queensboro Bridge’s
north outer roadway will be
converted into a two-way, bikeonly
lane while the south outer
roadway will be committed to
foot traffic.
“This exciting news comes
after years of persistent advocacy
from leaders and activists
throughout Queens,” state
Senator Michael Gianaris said.
“The new bike and pedestrian
lanes will make crossing the
East River safer for everyone
and change how we move
around our city for the better. I
especially want to thank Transportation
Alternatives, the
tireless advocates who worked
with them, and all the public
officials whose work made this
possible. I stand ready to help
get this done at the earliest opportunity.”
Councilman Jimmy Van
Bramer has long been an advocate
for street safety and adding
infrastructure for cyclists as
Queens residents become less
reliant on cars.
“This news is a huge win for
all of us who’ve been fighting
Asian American Business Development Center
launches project to help small businesses
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.4 COM | FEB. 5-FEB. 11, 2021
for the last five years not only
to save lives, but for a cleaner,
greener and healthier city,” Van
Bramer said. “Bike lanes are
key to a post-COVID new economy,
and I will make sure to hold
the mayor to a real timeline.”
Construction is expected to
be completed in 2022. Transportation
Alternatives Executive
Director Danny Harris
called the safety measures on
the Queensboro Bridge a “giant
leap forward” for the city.
“We look forward to working
with the de Blasio administration
on this vital new project
and other efforts to improve infrastructure
for cyclists and pedestrians
on bridges and streets
across the five boroughs,” Harris
said.
Astoria resident Macartney
Morris, an outspoken Transportation
Alternative activist,
has worked alongside Queens
residents since 2016 on the
Queensboro Bridge bike lane
proposal.
“I applaud Mayor de Blasio
for finally acknowledging the
reality that it is overcrowded
and dangerous for those who
walk and bike over it every
day,” Morris said. “There will
be a new mayor in less than 12
months, and this mayor should
be evaluated on the actions he
takes right now, not on the ideas
he announces and suggests that
the next mayor do.”
In addition to the Queensboro
Bridge project, de Blasio
announced that the city’s Open
Streets program would become
permanent, giving back the
streets to pedestrians and bicyclists.
“We’ll make Open Streets
permanent, and we’ll keep
building them out more each
year so New Yorkers have a better
way to live, and not one that
always depends on the automobile,”
he said.
Photo via Shutterstock
BY QNS STAFF
The Asian American Business Development
Center (AABDC) announced that it is launching an
initiative to help struggling minority small businesses
get back on their feet.
Project Rebuild would connect minority small
businesses with big corporations seeking to provide
grants, as well as with Employee Resource
Groups, who want to volunteer their professional
expertise as non-financial support.
Additionally, AABDC is devoting its sixth annual
Asian American Business Roundtable to small
business recovery by gathering a C-Suite level virtual
panels to bring together stakeholders and propose
solutions to financial issues brought on by the
pandemic on Feb. 5 and Feb. 8.
Project Rebuild was launched to aid the many
small businesses throttled by the continuing
pandemic. AABDC has already signed up nearly
50 Asian American small businesses across the
country who are looking to be connected with
resources.
“This past year has demonstrated the importance
of businesses and their leaders to step up
to provide solutions,” said Vivek Sankaran, thhe
co-chairman of the 2021 AABR, and president and
CEO of Albertson Cos Inc. “Helping small businesses
not just survive, but succeed, despite the
recent calamities, translates into recovery for
communities everywhere.”
See details about the roundtable discussions
below.
Friday, Feb. 5, 2021: With opening speaker and
moderator Michael D. Park, Senior Partner, McKinsey,
with a distinguished panel of CEOs including
Vivek Sankaran, President and CEO, Albertson;
Roy Weathers, Vice Chair, PwC US and CEO,
CEO Action for Racial Equity; and Seth Kaufman,
CEO, Moet Hennessy North America.
Monday, Feb. 8, 2021: With a panel of Chief
Diversity Officers (CDO) to discuss “Empowering
Employees to be Change Agents for Minority Communities”
from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. EST. Companies
represented at the Feb. 8 panel include: moderator
Shannon Schuyler, Chief Purpose and Inclusion
Officer, PWC; Lisa Chang, Chief People Officer, the
Coca-Cola Company; Susan Reid, Global Head of
D&I, Morgan Stanley; and Caroline Rhodes, Global
Head of I&D, Diageo. Prior to the panel with CDO’s
a fireside chat discussing a study on ensuring
equity for Asian American communities during
COVID-19 recovery will take place from 11:30 a.m.
until 12 p.m.
To register and view the program, visit
aabr2021.eventbrite.com.
For more information on Project Rebuild, visit
aabdc.com/project-rebuild-how-big-businesses
can-save-small-minority-businesses/.
Visit www.aabdc.com for more information. JOHN WANG, PRESIDENT OF AABDC, INC.
/www.aabdc.com
/aabr2021.eventbrite.com
/www.aabdc.com
