There are approximately, to this date, a total of 400 miles of bicycle lanes; expansion averages 20 - 30 miles per year. The total mileage of the Master Plan is 900 miles. The total mileage for NYC road network is 19,324 (18,242 lane-miles of streets, 1,082 of arterial highways).

There are approximately 196 miles of Greenway bicycle paths completed today, including a 32-mile interim waterfront path around Manhattan, part of which is on-street. There are a total of 350 miles for the Greenway Master Plan

Schools: (Some), Libraries: (Some), Transit Stations: (Few), Recreation Centers: (Some), Government Buildings: (Few), Office Buildings: (Some), Retail Centers: (Some), Public Spaces and Parks: (Some)
The NYC City Rack Program has installed close to 3000 racks in areas that would otherwise not have space for separate facilities. City Racks are available to any business or property owner who requests them. City Racks are installed by request of anyone who would want/use a bicycle rack in any public location as long as it follows citing guidelines.*

Andrew Vesselinovitch, AICP
Bicycle Program Director

A new bicycle map is published annually. The bike maps include information and detailed routes in the 5 boroughs. In 1997 the first maps were published with a distribution of just 80,000. The most recent 2004 map was increased in production to 180,000. New initiatives for 2004 have also increased distribution from just bicycle shops, organizations, government agencies and non-profits to include a large number of NYC universities and YMCAs.

There is quite an extensive system that allows bicyclists to submit ideas or concerns to public officials. The www.nyc.gov website has links to all the different departments and agencies in NYC and also includes email and contact information for all elected and public officials. Additionally there is also the telephone information service “311” which connects people in NYC to any type of NYC-based information they need. Government agencies can directly receive complaints and requests from bicyclists. “311” has been used to request bicycle racks, request bike lanes, ask for repairs or more signage and many other things related to cycling in NYC.

There is one line of buses that has bicycle racks. The special service QBx1 bus provides bicycle rack service across the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge √√

Bikes are permitted on the subways 24 hours a day with no additional fee or special permit. The Staten Island Ferry which connects Staten Island to Lower Manhattan, and is within connecting distance to the subway station, allows passengers and bicycles on board for free. The major railroads connecting to NYC, including the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), Metro North, PATH trains and New Jersey Transit (NJT) are all bicycle friendly and accommodate cyclists, with the purchase of a special one-time permit in addition to their normal passenger fare. Access to these railroads directly connects cyclists in NYC to the New York suburbs, and various destinations in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.

All numbers below are in the (212) area code unless otherwise indicated.
* A Bicycle Shop, 349 W 14th St, 691-6149
* Bikes By George, 413 E 12th St, 533-0203
* Bicycle Habitat, 224 Lafayette St, 431-3315
* Bicycles Plus, 1400 3rd Ave, 794-2929
* Bicycles Plus, 1690 2nd Ave, 722-2201
* Bicycle Renaissance, 430 Columbus Ave, 724-2350
* CNC Bicycle Works Ltd, 1101 1st Ave, 230-1919
* Conrad's Bike Shop, 25 Tudor City Pl, 697-6966
* Eddie's Bicycle Shop, 490 Amsterdam Ave, 580-2011
* Frank's Bike shop, 553 Grand St, 533-6332
* Gotham Bikes, 112 W Broadway, 732-2453
* Manhattan Bikes, 791 9th Ave, 262-0111
* Metro Bicycles,
* 231 W 96th St, 663-7531
* 1311 Lexington Ave, 427-4450
* 360 W 47th St, 581-4500
* 546 Ave of the Americas , 255-5100
* 332 E 14th St, 228-4344
* 417 Canal St, 334-8000
* Newgen bicycles, 832 9th Ave, 757-2418
* Spillway bicycles, 163 Malcolm X Blvd, 316-4753
* Toga Bikeshop, 110 West End Ave, 799-9625
* Tread Bikeshop, 225 Dyckman St, 544-7055

Recent studies show that more people are riding bicycles in NYC now than in the past 23 years. As of August 2003 there was a 30% increase in bike traffic from 2002. It is estimated that nearly 4,000 cyclists commute from the outer boroughs into Manhattan making up part of the 100,000 bikes that are on the street everyday. This number includes people who are commuting to work, using their bikes as their normal or recreational mode of transportation, or working as messengers and food delivery persons.
One tally done in Manhattan at the end of August 2003 showed a total of 15,300 bike riders from 7 a.m. -7 p.m., and these are only the results from a single location.

Promotion of Bike Month NYC is quite extensive. The most widely used resource is the www.BikeMonthNYC.org website. This year the Bike Month NYC website received 29,000 visitors in just the month of May. Roughly 2,500 people requested calendars through the website. Another mode of advertisement is the brochures that include all the 200+ Bike Month events; these are available through many venues. There is also an extensive subway and bicycle shelter ad campaign which now includes advertisements in Spanish reaching over 1 million people.

According to the most recent American Community Survey that was last revised on August 27, 2004, there are 522,000 students attending college. “The total school enrollment in New York City was 2.0 million in 2003. Preprimary school enrollment was 217,000 and elementary or high school enrollment was 1.3 million children. College enrollment was 522,000.” Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Average annual rainfall 47.2 inches
Average annual snowfall 29.2 inches

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Yes, there is a Recycle-a-Bicycle Program that works with predominantly underprivileged, urban youth (aged 10-18). The program teaches them how to repair and build bicycles that they can sell to raise money for their groups. Also many of the kids are able to repair bicycles that will be their own. The program was created in 1994 and has now grown to 2 locations, one in northern Manhattan near the Bronx and the other in Brooklyn. In addition to having a regular curriculum during the school day, both locations are also open after-school hours and on weekends. Recently they have expanded to open two retail shops where Recycle-a-Bicycle graduates are employed.
This year a pilot program was revealed in the Bronx. Rebicycling, aims to incorporate art, environmental awareness and health into a 10-week bicycle re-building program. Over the 10 weeks the students design, build and customize previously derelict bicycles that, at the end of the program, will be theirs to own. The program closed with a bicycle tour of the South Bronx. The success of the program in its first year has caused Recycle-a-Bicycle to adopt Rebicycling as a permanent program.

In New York City there are a total of 2,027 bridges. This number of bridges is representative of bridges of all sizes and uses. Many are very small and are considered part of the road way, crossing canals or as part of a highway; some are very large and accommodate vast numbers of users daily.
The main bridge operators are the Department of Transportation, The Metropolitan Transit Authority Bridges and Tunnels and The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Department of Transportation manages the largest number, overseeing 755 bridges, 19 of which connect boroughs separated by water. The bridges that statistically carry the highest amount of daily automobile traffic offer bicycle facilities, along with all East River bridges.
There are two borough-connecting bridges that do not have bicycle access. The Bronx-Whitestone Bridge does not allow bicycles because of the lack of a path. To remedy the situation and accommodate cyclists the NYCDOT and the Queens Surface Corporation offer the QBx1, a bus with bike rack on the front that picks up and drops off cyclists at both ends of the bridge. Most bridges that do not allow bicycles are part of the highway system that prohibits bicycles for safety reasons. Through the extensive and growing network of bicycle paths there are often safer alternative bridge routes provided for bicycles.
The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge connecting Staten Island to Brooklyn is closed off to bicyclists and pedestrians, although there is an initiative from many groups to try to create a pathway. There is access to Staten Island via the ferry.

n/a

In process

8,080,000.

Transportation Alternatives,

“A Greenway Plan for New York City” was published in 1993 by the NYC Department of City Planning.
The “New York City Bicycle Master Plan” was published jointly by the New York City Departments of City Planning and Transportation in 1997.
The cost to implement these programs is covered 80% by federal transportation reimbursement funds and 20% by the city.

In the upcoming year the NYCDOT has many scheduled improvements, including adding an additional 20 – 30 miles of designated bicycle facilities. There is also a new focus on “higher quality” bike lanes, ones that connect already used parts of the existing system to make travel more convenient. As the system becomes more complete there is an anticipated increase in bicycle traffic.
NYCDOT plans on installing more City Racks throughout the 5 boroughs and also forwarding efforts to build sheltered bicycle parking facilities at places like Pennsylvania Station and the Whitehall Ferry Terminal. An increase in the production and distribution of bike maps to over 200,000 for 2005 edition is planned.
New plans for Bike Month are also underway. NYCDOT is hoping to further their ad-campaign and reach a more targeted audience by comparing bus shelter ad locations and Bike New York rider list to the list of people who requested Bike Month NYC calendars from the website. By comparing the statistics, and finding out where most of the requests for information are coming from, they can learn where a greater number of potential bikers are located and/or where more outreach is needed and plan advertising accordingly. They are also looking to reach out more to Spanish speakers, through media and increased production of Spanish language advertisements, and plan on sending post-cards via direct mail and improve overall distribution

Andrew Vesselinovitch, AICP
Bicycle Program Director

Source
Essential Big Apple