
Lights out for drivers!
City unveils monthslong scheme to improve cycling at drivers’ expense
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
They’re taking the green
light away from motorists —
and giving it to the cyclists!
City transportation honchos
quietly enhanced the
fl ow of bicycle traffi c at the expense
of motorists in Brownstone
Brooklyn nearly a year
ago, the city’s top transit offi -
cial announced Wednesday.
“In a year when two thirds
of cycling fatalities have unfortunately
been here in
Brooklyn, we are excited to
embark on innovative new
safety projects,” said Department
of Transportation Commissioner
Polly Trottenberg.
The cloak-and-dagger
bike-safety scheme — which
the department rolled out in
December — saw for longer
delays between green lights
at successive intersections
along two one-way streets in
Boerum Hill, allowing traffi
c fl ow to better synchronize
with the slower speeds of cyclists
compared to drivers.
@
COURIER L 4 IFE, OCT. 25-31, 2019
Traffi c lights along the
eight-block stretches of Hoyt
and Bond streets — between
Schermerhorn and Baltic
streets — has been secretly
turning green 11 to 12 seconds
after the previous light
in an effort to match the average
pace of bikers, who regularly
travel around 15 milesper
hour, according to the
agency.
Before that, the lights
turned green seven seconds
after one-another to cater to
the roadway’s 25 miles-perhours
speed limit.
Vehicle speeds have
slightly slowed on Hoyt Street,
while remaining the same on
Bond Street — and there was
no sign of increased traffi c
along neighboring roadways,
according to the department.
Meanwhile, the adjustments
saw less bikers running
red lights along the stretch,
according to the agency.
One Clinton Hill cyclist
said she liked the agency’s
move and that the lights on
the streets align well with her
speed.
“They run pretty well,”
said Shoshana Simpson. “If
it’s going to be better for cyclists,
I’m in favor of it — it’s
my main mode of transportation.”
Transit bigwigs chose the
two streets because they feature
some of the borough’s
busiest bike lanes, with more
than 500 pedalers-per-hour
during rush hours — which
usually outnumbers cars, according
to the agency.
The push to improve street
safety comes at the tail-end
of a particularly deadly year
for cyclists in Kings County
— where 17 bikers have been
killed in traffi c accidents,
compared with just nine in
the other four boroughs.
Meanwhile, the adjustments
saw less bikers run red
lights along the stretch, according
to the agency.
Transportation offi cials
plan to replicate the project
next year on Clinton Street
between Brooklyn Heights
and Carroll Gardens, along
with 43rd Avenue in Queens,
and Prince Street in Manhattan.
Mayor Bill de Blasio is touting
the new transit scheme as
part of his “Green Wave” bike
initiative — a sweeping $58.4
million plan to build 80 miles
of additional protected bike
lanes by the end of 2021 —
even though the secret light
adjustments predated his July
“Green Wave” announcement
by roughly eight months.
Clinton Hill cyclist Shoshana Simpson said she liked the city’s move to
synchonize traffi c lights with bicyclist speeds. Photo by Derrick Watterson
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