A stretch of Northern Boulevard in Bayside with protected bike lanes is set to undergo a makeover following a $3.74 million allocation in the city council’s 2025 budget.
The announcement of a revamp comes after years of complaints. Many residents have been calling for change ever since the two-way bike lanes, which run from 223rd Street to Douglaston Parkway, were installed by the Department of Transportation (DOT) in 2018. Many have criticized both the safety aspects of the 2018 design and the aesthetics of the concrete barriers, which they say clash visually with the greenery of adjacent Alley Pond Park.
But less than a year ago, members of the Transportation Committee under Community Board 11 proposed the idea of a greenway. They envisioned a better corridor for pedestrians and cyclists, with more greenery, lighting and better signage to increase safety.
After pitching the idea to the DOT and local Council Member Vickie Paladino, the funding for the first phase of a greenway redesign has arrived. The new design could potentially bring the bike lane and pedestrian path further away from cars, with increased protection through greenery and other barriers.
“Ever since they were poorly installed, we’ve made it our number one priority at CB 11,” said the board’s Chairperson Paul DiBenedetto in an interview. “Not to get rid of the bike lanes, but to redo them and make them worthy of Northeast Queens and Alley Pond.”
Micromobility safety advocates secured a win with the installation of the jersey-protected bike lanes six years ago. While the DOT says that the design helped calm traffic, many local residents still feel that the corridor is unsafe.
One of the main criticisms is the lack of safety at the intersection of Northern Boulevard and Cross Island Parkway, where cars coming off a twisting ramp are met with pedestrians and cyclists.
“It’s a very stressful intersection,” explained DiBenedetto. “There’s bikes, there’s pedestrians, there’s cars behind you, and you’re looking over your left shoulder, almost 180 degrees, to make all these decisions. It’s a terrible, unsafe situation.”
Another chief criticism is the jersey barriers – slabs of concrete that are designed to protect cyclists from traveling vehicles. Officials and community members consider them an eyesore, especially as they deteriorate over time.
“This project will improve the greenway along the Cross Island Parkway and, most importantly, will remove the unpopular jersey barriers along Northern Boulevard with a full redesign,” said Paladino, who advocated for the funding.
Residents say the current bike lanes also tend to accumulate trash, as street cleaning cannot take place with the jersey barriers.
At a monthly community board meeting in November 2023, Chair DiBenedetto said that the area resembled a “third world country” with the accumulation of trash and lack of aesthetic considerations. During that meeting, several board members pushed for a rehaul of the lanes that they believed were a “temporary solution” to traffic fatalities on Northern Boulevard.
The DOT has not released specifics about the redesign or when the project is expected to start. In response to inquiries from QNS, the agency acknowledged that a renovation is coming due to the funding.
“Our redesign of Northern Boulevard has helped calm traffic on one of Queens’ most dangerous streets,” said a press officer for the DOT in an email statement. “We’re thrilled to receive funding from Speaker Adams and Council Member Paladino to support a capital project that will upgrade this design with sturdier materials.”
As soon as the DOT shares its plans for the first phase, the community board’s transportation committee will convene to provide feedback before discussing it with the full board during the monthly meeting in Bayside. However, as always, the recommendations they put forward are advisory.
“I’m encouraged by the meeting we had with [the DOT],” said DiBenedetto. “They were pretty positive and I think they’re looking to create something that the community will feel good about in terms of safety, design and use.”
“This should be something beautiful,” he added.
