Beware Of Parking Restrictions, Detours
Thousands of bicyclists will roll their way through New York City this Sunday, May 5, in the TD Five Borough Bike Tour, and as they pass through parts of Astoria, Long Island City and Greenpoint, drivers should be prepared for detours and parking restrictions.
Organized by Bike New York-a non-profit organization which promotes bicycle education in the city-the tour is expected to attract 32,000 participants who will pedal along 40 miles of open, vehicle-free roads this Sunday morning and afternoon.
The tour starts in lower Manhattan at the corner of Church and Franklin streets, then makes its way northward through midtown Manhattan,
Central Park and Harlem before crossing into the Bronx. After a brief stop in the Bronx, the tour reenters Manhattan, with bicyclists riding southbound to the Ed Koch- Queensboro Bridge.
After crossing the westbound lanes of the Queensboro Bridge’s upper roadway, the tour enters Long Island City, with bikers departing from the off-ramp at the corner of 21st Street and Queens Plaza South. Riders will head northbound on 21st Street into Astoria to Hoyt Avenue North in Astoria Park, where a rest area is available.
From Astoria Park, the tour continues southbound through Astoria and Long Island City on the following streets:
– Hoyt Avenue North between 21st and 19th streets;
– 19th Street between Hoyt Avenue North and Ditmars Boulevard;
– Ditmars Boulevard between 19th Street and Shore Boulevard;
– Shore Boulevard between Ditmars Boulevard and Astoria Park South;
– Astoria Park South between Shore Boulevard and 14th Street;
– 14th Street between Astoria Park South and 31st Avenue;
– 31st Avenue between 14th Street and Vernon Boulevard;
– Vernon Boulevard between 31st Avenue and 44th Drive;
– 44th Drive between Vernon Boulevard and 11th Street; and
– 11th Street between 44th Drive and the Pulaski Bridge.
Bikers will then cross the Pulaski Bridge southbound into Greenpoint Brooklyn and continue traveling on McGuiness Boulevard to Java Street. The tour will then turn west on Java Street to Franklin Avenue, then south on Franklin Street to Kent Avenue and then south on Kent Avenue into Williamsburg.
The tour will then wind its way through other Brooklyn neighborhoods before crossing over the Verrazano Narrows Bridge into Staten Island. Following a three-mile journey through Staten Island, bikers will ride the Staten Island Ferry back into lower Manhattan, where the tour will conclude near Battery Park.
Motorists in Astoria and Long Island City are advised that parking will be restricted along the bike tour route as of midnight this Sunday, May 5. All vehicles found parked on the tour route can and will be towed away at the owner’s expense.
Drivers planning to travel in the vicinity of the bike tour while the event is in progress are advised to consider alternate routes.
For additional information on the Five Boro Bike Tour, visit www.bikenewyork.org/ride/fiveboro bike-tour.
