April 29, 2016 Staff Report
A long-awaited bikeway connecting Queens and Brooklyn is officially open.
The Department of Transportation unveiled the new two-way protected bike path over the Pulaski Bridge, which runs from Long Island City to Greenpoint, Brooklyn, on Friday. A pedestrian-only walkway runs alongside, whereas cyclists and pedestrians used to share a narrow path along the bridge.
DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg called the bikeway a “critical project” that “will help pedestrians, bikers, cars, trucks and buses in Brooklyn and Queens get safely where they need to go.”
Friday’s unveiling followed several years of fits and starts for the project. Delays in the contracting and design processes set the project back multiple times.
Then last weekend, cyclists took to the bikeway thinking it was open, even though the DOT still had final touches to complete, as the LIC Post reported Monday.
“For the past four years, I have advocated for this project that is vital to the neighborhoods of Greenpoint and Long Island City, and today, I’m so glad to see it completed,” Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer said. “Now, it’s easier and safer for pedestrians and cyclists to travel between Brooklyn and Queens.”
The DOT has promised 15 more miles of protected bike lanes to be constructed throughout the city in 2016 – the most ever in a calendar year, according to the agency.
