The Prospect Park West bike lane remains so controversial that 800 people filled out an online survey on the first day it was posted.
A spokeswoman for Councilman Brad Lander (D–Park Slope) called the response “huge,” and saw it as evidence that the four-month-old two-way bike lane along the eastern edge of Park Slope is still a hot-button issue?
Ya think?
Even as Lander and Councilman Steve Levin (D–Williamsburg) were jointly unveiling their Survey Monkey questionnaire, both anti- and pro-bike forces were mobilizing for dueling rallies this Thursday, both seeking to make their claim as the Department of Transportation decides whether to make the bike lane permanent, or scrub it and bring back a lane of car traffic to a key roadway.
“The [city] has been clear that this is a trial period and they’re analyzing accidents, speeding and traffic volume,” said Lander’s spokeswoman Rachel Goodman. “We figured we could supplement their data with some community feedback data.”
The survey, which takes about five minutes, asks questions ranging from what type of transportation you use to whether Prospect Park West has become safer for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers since the bike lane was implemented.
The survey also solicits feedback on a range of adjustments to the lane, including removing parking spots to improve sightlines between cyclists and pedestrians at crosswalks, installing concrete islands for crossing pedestrians and repainting the lane to make it “more compatible with the historic character of Prospect Park West.”
Since the bike lane was first proposed last year, it has been one of the most controversial issues in Park Slope.
Many cyclists and pedestrians hail the lane as a safer path that has reduced the well-documented speeding on Prospect Park West by eliminating one lane of car traffic. But drivers and other locals say the lane is ugly, has exacerbated traffic, reduced parking, and increased the danger for pedestrians who must dodge cyclists traveling in both directions.
Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan has said that the agency will finish compiling data on Prospect Park West traffic by January.
Dueling bike lane protests on Thursday, Oct. 21. Supportes gather at Grand Army Plaza on Thursday, Oct. 21 at 8 am. For info, e-mail rsvp@parkslopeneighbors.org. Antis gather at Prospect Park West and Carroll Street at 8:30 am. E-mail ppwbikelane@gmail.com for info.
