MAX
COURIER LIFE, J B G M ULY 26-AUG. 1, 2019 25
Cyclists to get
head starts at
intersections
GETTING THE GREEN LIGHT: A new law will allow cyclists
to get ahead of motorists at intersections, biking with pedestrian
crosslights before the cars beside them can go.
Getty Images
BY ROSE ADAMS
Brooklyn bikers are getting
the green light!
City Council passed
a law on Tuesday allowing
cyclists to follow pedestrian
signals — before
traffi c lights turn
green — at thousands of
NYC intersections, giving
them a seven to 11-
second head start on motorists.
The law will affect
about 1,300 intersections
in Brooklyn and over
4,000 intersections citywide,
or wherever traffi c
signals are set to provide
a “Leading Pedestrian
Interval,” which allows
pedestrians — and
now bikers — to begin
crossing before parallel
motor-vehicle traffi c
gets the green light. The
safety precaution could
make cyclists more visible
to turning cars and
save lives in the process,
according to the bill’s
sponsor, Councilman
Carlos Menchaca (DSunset
Park).
“We know that intersections
are the most
dangerous place for cyclists
and pedestrians,”
said Menchaca, who introduced
the bill to Council
four years ago. “With
this simple and common
sense change to the law,
every cyclist will have a
safer way to cross intersections.”
Council passed the
new law yesterday with
31 votes in favor, and
seven against. The vote
comes during a bloody
year for NYC’s cyclist
community, which has
seen 17 deaths since January,
compared to 2018’s
10 fatalities. Just yesterday,
two cyclists died in
accidents: one 58-yearold
victim collided with a
box truck in Greenpoint ,
and another 17-year-old
cyclist was struck by a
fl atbed truck in a Staten
Island intersection.
For all the fanfare
surrounding the passage
of Menchaca’s bill, most
Brooklyn cyclists already
cross with the pedestrian
signal — if they
even wait that long, according
to one biker.
“I didn’t know it was
illegal,” said avid cyclist
and Queens resident, Tyler
Wright. “I’ve always
run the lights.”
But to the Sunset Park
legislator, the law signals
more than a change
in policy — it points to
the city’s evolving view
of cyclists.
“Today, I am proud to
say that we are shifting
the way the law treats
cyclists to match reality,”
said Councilman
Menchaca in a statement
on Tuesday. “We cannot
ensure everyone’s
safety on the road if we
continue to treat cyclists
like motor vehicles.”