Companies in one of many last-standing industrial corners of Lengthy Island Metropolis say they’ll solely take a lot gentrification — and {that a} deliberate new bike lane has put them over the sting.
Native industries argue that the bicycle owner carve-out within the stylish Queens neighborhood will probably be harmful for his or her truck drivers — to not point out the bikers.
“Not each road is secure for a motorcycle lane. You wouldn’t put a motorcycle lane down the center of the LIE. It’s simply not secure. And that is comparable,” argued Matthew Dienstag, co-owner of the native LeNoble Lumber.
However the metropolis — which touts on its transportation Site that just about 1 million New Yorkers repeatedly trip bikes — is plowing forward with plans to attach the Pulaski and Kosciuszko bridges for bikers.
The connection will come by means of Borden, Starr and Overview avenues — a harmful sector of Blissville notorious for its big-truck congestion.
“It’s like, ‘That is what we’re doing, we don’t give a s–t.’ Excuse my French,” griped Michael Diamond of J&S Provide Corp, a 75-year-old insulation and roofing distributor firm, to The Publish, referring to the town’s stance.
J&S Provide is among the dozens of warehouse companies, in addition to a metropolis Sanitation Division waste administration facility, that contribute to the heavy stream of truck and forklift site visitors touring out and in of the hall.
Large field vehicles already swerve throughout each lanes of site visitors to enter and exit their warehouses, a difficult maneuver made much more troublesome by the overcrowded streets’ persistent double-parking drawback.
Native civic associations and the neighborhood board requested the bike lane as an answer to the security points.
5 individuals, together with two cyclists, have been killed — and greater than 170 others injured — on the native roads previously 5 years.
“We have to do every thing we will to make sure we don’t lose one other life to a preventable loss of life,’’ metropolis Councilwoman Julie Gained instructed The Publish.
“Rising pedestrian and bicycle owner site visitors will solely assist companies by rising their buyer base in addition to their workforce,’’ she mentioned. “I stay up for having discussions with any particular person enterprise, DOT, and the neighborhood board.”
Below the plan, as a lot as 15 ft will probably be carved off Overview Avenue’s present 52-foot roadway to make room for the two-way biking path and buffer zone.
With house allotted for parking on either side of the street, nearly 22 ft could be left for transferring site visitors — a major slice that enterprise house owners say they can not surrender.
“There most likely will probably be extra truck accidents than there at the moment are,’’ Dienstag argued. “When you will have a tractor-trailer pulling into any one in every of these buildings there to place to again in or to drag out, they’re nearly hitting these automobiles afterwards.”
The enterprise house owners mentioned cyclists could be at risk, too.
In a span of 1 hour Friday morning, The Publish noticed 4 cyclists pedal down Overview Avenue, together with one who opted for the sidewalk path reasonably than the busy road.
“There’s lots of vehicles, so it’s higher this manner. Nobody’s round,” mentioned Richard Derba of Maspeth, Queens, who cycles to Greenpoint alongside the Overview Avenue sidewalk twice every week.
When requested if the incoming bike lane could be useful, Derba mentioned it wouldn’t make a distinction to him as a result of the vehicular site visitors would nonetheless be too heavy for his consolation.
Enterprise leaders, together with Diamond and Dienstag, laid out their frustrations throughout a undertaking walk-through with DOT representatives earlier this summer time however mentioned they really feel ignored.
“They didn’t appear to be very open to altering issues,” Diamond mentioned. “That’s the impression I bought. ‘We don’t care, we’re the town, that is what we’re going to do.’ ’’
Thirty-two enterprise house owners penned a petition to the DOT asking that it pause — not cease — the undertaking earlier than building is slated to start this fall.
However the metropolis company says it has already performed an in depth research of the undertaking zone from each a motorcycle and freight truck perspective.
“In an space like Blissville tormented by extreme rushing, we developed this undertaking on the request of the neighborhood with sturdy native and enterprise enter to enhance security for everybody on these streets,” rep Vincent Barone instructed The Publish.
“This route fills a crucial hole in our bike lane community and can go a great distance in direction of supporting biking ridership, which has elevated dramatically within the space over current years. We stay up for implementing these much-needed security enhancements this fall.”
Supply hyperlink
