Mayor Adams and other administrative officials ride bikes as part of City’s celebration of Earth Day, on same day of the announcement of over $900 million in traffic safety improvements over the next five years. Image Credit: Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.
The plan follows additional commitments to improve safety and accessibility in 1,000 intersections citywide earlier this year. On April 23, 2022, Mayor Eric Adams announced a $904 million investment over the next five years in improving traffic safety and infrastructure. The investments will help advance the “NYC Streets Plan”, the five-year plan developed by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to improve street safety, quality and accessibility.
DOT is required by law to develop a transportation master plan every five years; the NYC Streets Plan is the first plan issued since the law was enacted in December 2019. Some highlights from the NYC Streets Plan include expanding bike lanes, dedicated bus lanes and busways, reforming pedestrian spaces on city streets and on-street parking, and reducing dangerous driving within New York City.
With the announcement, Mayor Adams stated that five bike lanes would receive physical upgrades starting immediately. The five lanes selected are:
20th Street, from 7th Avenue to 10th Avenue (Brooklyn)
Northern Blvd, from 41st Avenue to Honeywell Street (Queens)
Grand Street, with the exact limits to be determined (Brooklyn)
60th Street, from 1st Avenue to York Avenue (Manhattan)
Southern Boulevard, with the exact limits to be determined (Bronx)
Of the $904 million, nearly $580 million will come from capital funding, and the remainder to be budgeted into annual expenses.
The announcement follows other efforts by the City to make streets safer and more accessible to pedestrians and cyclists. In January, the City announced that DOT would make improvements to traffic signals, crosswalks, visibility, and expanded pedestrian spaces in 1,000 intersections citywide. Earlier this week, the City announced that 150 streets, spanning 300 blocks, would be participating in this year’s open streets program. The open streets program temporarily limits vehicular traffic to open street space for pedestrian and cyclist uses, providing New Yorkers with access to more outdoor spaces.
Mayor Adams stated, “This investment is a game-changer. Too many New Yorkers have lost their lives to the traffic violence crisis, and we are seeing cities across the country struggle just like us, but this historic investment will allow New Yorkers to walk and cycle around our city without fear. With this historic investment of over $900 million, we are tackling this crisis head-on and setting the tone nationwide. We are going to ‘Get Stuff Done’ and deliver safe streets for New Yorkers. This is how we save lives.”
By: Veronica Rose (Veronica is the CityLaw fellow and a New York Law School graduate, Class of 2018.)