Thought to post this from February regarding CB3 Resolution requesting Safety improvements to Chrystie Street:
February 2015 Full Board Minutes of Community Board 3
Support for Safety Concerns / Chrystie Street Bike Lane VOTE: TITLE: Community Board 3 Resolution Requesting Safety Improvements for Chrystie Street
WHEREAS, Chrystie Street’s road design has not been adjusted for 7 years, since the 2008 Manhattan Bridge Bicycle Access Network installation that brought traffic calming and bike lanes to the area. Cycling ridership has grown tremendously in the years following DOT’s upgrades to the Manhattan Bridge, in particular along Chrystie Street for the northbound AM and southbound PM rush hours; and
WHEREAS, Second Avenue has seen a surge of bicycling usage since the introduction of its protected bike lane, which feeds directly into southbound Chrystie Street. The Second Avenue bike lanes were installed during the 2010 First Avenue/Second Avenue Select Bus Service installation; and
WHEREAS, Current conditions on Chrystie Street all but guarantee hazards for cyclists and drivers alike with severely faded bike lanes in the southbound direction, and with uneven and hummock-filled surfaces because of heavy truck and bus traffic; and
WHEREAS, Southbound cyclists must regularly contend with double parked vehicles and garage driveways blanketing the west side of the street; and
WHEREAS, Southbound cyclists must regularly make a confusing and dangerous transition at E 2 Street (just before Houston Street) from the protected bike lane on the east side of Second Avenue to get over to the unprotected, faded bike lane on the west side of Chrystie Street; and
WHEREAS, Vision Zero’s first year of record has seen marked reductions in crashes and fatalities for all categories, except cyclists killed; and
WHEREAS, The Sara D Roosevelt Park Coalition and Transportation Alternatives support safety enhancements brought to cyclists, pedestrians, and drivers alike traveling in, to, and beside Sara D Roosevelt Park. Significant numbers of pedestrians, especially seniors and children, must make unsafe crossings of Chrystie St and Delancey St along this corridor.
Groups of pedestrians must be taken into consideration include:
? Sara D Roosevelt Park has three playgrounds and many sports fields used by many programs for children: Pre-K/Day Care/Head Start Programs University Settlement (184 Eldridge St, at Rivington St); Lighthouse Preschool (82 Bowery, near Hester St); Preschool of America (39 Eldridge St, near Canal St); Garment Industry Day Care Center (between Grand St and Broome St); PS 42 Elementary School (71 Hester St, between Orchard and Ludlow St, but they do come to the Park); Asian Family Services – Chinese-American Planning Council run several programs for children and youth (165 Eldridge St, between Delancey and Rivington St); the Chinatown YMCA has afterschool programming (273 Bowery, at Houston St); Junior Soccer Leagues/Clubs.
? Several schools are located along Sara D Roosevelt Park: 198 Forsyth St (at Stanton St) is the location of several GED/High Schools (Cascades, Tenzer, Satellite Academy, Lyfe Center) and has an active daycare on site for the students who have young children; 100 Hester St (at Forsyth St) is the location of several Middle and High Schools (MS 131, Emma Lazarus and Pace HS) and has a Beacon Program; 38 Delancey St (at Forsyth St) is the Innovate Manhattan Charter School for 6- 8th grades.
? Many seniors make use of facilities in or near the Park: the BRC Senior Center (30 Delancey St, in the park); the Indochina Sino-Amercian Community Center – Senior Center (170 Forsyth St near Rivington St); the CenterLight Healthcare runs a day health center providing health-related services to the elderly, chronically ill and disabled (183 Chrystie St, near Rivington St); Rivington House is reopening as a nursing home (45 Rivington St, at Forsyth St). 5
? Men from homeless shelters, often seniors, use the Park: Bowery Mission (227 Bowery, between Rivington and Stanton St); Common Ground Andrews (297 Bowery, at Houston St).
? There are several community gardens in the Park: the M’Finda Kalunga Community Garden and the Elizabeth Hubbard Memorial Garden (between Delancey and Rivington St); and the Hua Mei Bird Sanctuary (between Delancey and Broome St); now
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that Community Board 3-Manhattan recommends that the Department of Transportation investigate Chrystie Street for potential safety enhancements to benefit all road users, including possible two way protected bike lane facilities on the east side of Chrystie Street adjacent to Sara D Roosevelt Park, additional pedestrian refuge islands along the entire corridor, and a smoother surface for all vehicles via a freshly milled and repaved street surface; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Community Board 3-Manhattan requests that DOT work with local stakeholders, including the Sara D Roosevelt Park Coalition, and conduct visioning sessions to get community input, before DOT develops a proposal for a redesign of Chrystie St bike/traffic lanes. DOT should come to CB3 for input on a final design.
We would add for consideration as well:
– the Housing for the Deaf buildings on Forsyth near Stanton
– Forsyth Garden Conservancy
– Senior’s Garden of the BRC
Any groups or community usage we missed?