It's Not Easy Being Green editorial

                                                 

• IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN

  It's not easy being green. Or NYPD blue. But the color of congestion

  is choleric.

  The bike build out was ballyhooed as “visionary”. A jewel in the crown

  of billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg's” luxury destination” It has been

  an exercise in zealotry. Resulting in world class congestion and a public

  safety crisis.

  An epidemic of scofflaw cycling has produced numerous injuries,

  deaths and too many harrowing close calls to count.

  Surely this was not the intention of Mayor Bloomberg or the

  visionaries.

  Transportation experts and laymen alike knew that importing European

  bike programs was misguided. The logistics of street width and population

  density are far different.

  It's like trying to force a square peg into a round hole. It's not easy

  being green.

  Bike lobbyists Transportation Alternatives acquired undue political

  influence. The DOT under Commissioner Sadik Khan avoided an

  environmental impact study. She also refused to join a task force-

  a cooperative effort-including the NYPD and FDNY-where reality

  would have been confronted.

  Where a responsible bike culture might have been established.

  NYPD enforcement was undermined by years of being kept on

  a short mayoral leash. Rogue cyclists acquired a sense of entitlement.

  Helmets were not mandated. Licensing fought.The outcry to have

  delivery cyclists-often employing motorized truck bikes-was derided

  as oppressive.

  All this side stepping of reasonable regulation enabled to “promote

  ridership.” The proof is in the pudding. New York has been taken

  for a ride.

  The Citibike program enables people to rent a bike. Avoiding repairs

  and maintenance. The lack of repair work and increasing commercial

  rent puts small bike shop owners out of business.

  Bike lifers who helped build the bike culture.

   

   The enterprise is now controlled by The Related Companies.The blue bikes have mechanical problems. Renters are less concerned about rough riding,repairs and personal safety.Tourists unaccustomed to city traffic take a ride on the wild side. Plunging into bike bedlam and motorists with congestion patience failure. A trickle of lawsuits indicates it may expand into a costly stream. According to a January 2018 study by Partnership for New York congestion will cost the city 100 billion dollars by 2013.The inability of emergency vehicles to negotiate bike lane squeezed streets can cost lives.There are over 3 million commuters who use public transportation 12 months a year. Around 80,000 cyclists-most of whom are young and healthy commute-weather permitting.What's wrong with this picture? A case of the tail wagging the dog.Bike lanes have shrunk vehicular lanes., One million more residents increases density. 50,000 more ride share vehicles. Voila world class congestion. First the public was slammed by rampant lawless riding. Recently congestion pricing was passed. Under whose control and exact terms still uncertain. What is certain is that the public has been hit by a tax. The result of unwise planning and political complicity. The bicycle advocates have conflated “going green” with an ends justifies the means bike build out. A dominoe effect has unleashed a bevy of problems. Tunnel vision disruptive. Politicians who are happy to accept campaign contributions while soliciting votes from a vociferous bike lobby say that it is an enforcement problem. Putting the onus on the NYPD whose authority has been undermined. What can be done? Ideally a comprehensive city plan. In the near term an independent study needs to be conducted. It would objectively assess the costs and benefits. Current and future of the bike build out. Thus providing reason and balance. The scooter lobby and two wheeled motorized vehicles are already bringing another layer of lawlessness. Ultimately it is in part an enforcment issue and needs to be treated as such. It deserves firm mayoral support. The NYPD needs to be given the tools and manpower to accomplish it. Use a compstat approach. Establish a unit that coordinates with local precincts. Cops on bikes. Cops on scooters. Licensing would provide revenue and a means of identification.Enforce the laws regulating delivery agents and the businesses that employ them. Enforcement at night is imperative. Finally enforcement must be smart, sufficient and sustained..
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