Work Begins On 4th Avenue Bike Lane In Park Slope

PARK SLOPE – The NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) announced last week that work has begun on the Park Slope portion of the 4th Avenue protected bike lane.

DOT crews kicked off work last week between 1st Street and 15th Street to implement safety improvements along the busy avenue, including:

• Installing curbside, parking-protected bike lanes
• Painting new pedestrian islands at intersections
• Updating parking regulations and expanding metered parking

In December 2017, DOT presented plans to install four miles of protected bike lanes, and other improvements, along 4th Avenue from 65th Street to Atlantic Avenue in an effort to provide bicyclists a direct route from Bay Ridge and Sunset Park to Downtown Brooklyn.

In January 2018, Council Member Brad Lander and Brooklyn Community Board 6 approved DOT’s proposal with the condition that the agency expedite the Park Slope/Boerum Hill portion of the project (8th Street to Atlantic) which was scheduled to be completed in Summer 2021. DOT agreed and committed to extending interim improvements to Atlantic Avenue by Fall 2019, using temporary, in-house materials, such as paint and flexible posts, until permanent materials are installed in 2021. The agency is currently using the temporary materials.

Bikes lanes were installed from 60th to 64th Street in Sunset Park last year, according to a DOT spokesperson, however ongoing MTA work has prevented the agency from extending the bike lane from 60th to 38th Street. This work includes repairs to the N and R subway tunnel, CBS New York reported in February. DOT will start work on these blocks as the MTA completes each section of its project.

Work will continue on the bike lane south from 15th Street to 38th Street this summer, according to DOT. Work heading north from 1st Street will not start until 2020 as the agency analyzes traffic along this strip and finalizes the design.