Video: No Truce At Bedford Avenue Bike Lane Debate

Bedford Avenue Bike Lane Debate (Gothamist/Ben Muessig)

Hotly-anticipated peace talks between supporters and opponents of the recently-erased Bedford Avenue bicycle lane fell short last night when both parties left a discussion at Pete's Candy Store in Williamsburg with the same seemingly irreparable differences that they brought to the table. Supporters of the Bedford Avenue lane insisted that a biking path on Brooklyn's longest road is necessary for both transportation and safety, while a community activist representing South Williamsburg's Hasidic Jewish residents expressed concerns about dangerous biking etiquette.

Here's a video with excerpts from the discussion:

Speaking in favor of the reestablishment of the bike lane — which was erased by the city with no notice and little explanation in December — was Caroline Samponaro, director of bicycle advocacy for Transportation Alternatives, Baruch Herzfeld, founder of the Bike Gemach cycle repair shop in Williamsburg, cyclist Lyla Durden, and bike messenger Heather Loop, who organized the infamous topless bike lane protest. Speaking in opposition of the Bedford Avenue bike lane — which was briefly repainted by cycling activists before being buffed again — was Hasidic community activist and one-time City Council candidate Isaac Abraham. Both the Department of Transportation and the Mayor's Office were invited, but turned down the request, according to the moderator.

Though Abraham insisted that bike lanes put South Williamsburg residents — particularly children boarding and exiting Yeshiva school buses — at risk, cycling path supporters said a bike lane would make Bedford Avenue safer for all users. "A bicycle lane is a necessary piece of transportation infrastructure, just like a sidewalk," said Samponaro "Wouldn't it be better if we had the right infrastructure?" The cycling activists called for a new bike lane, possibly protected from traffic like the lane on Grand Street in Manhattan, as well as traffic calming devices like speed bumps that could extend across the car lanes and the cycling path. Some suggested that the Yeshivas establish more formal bus stops so buses don't let off passengers as sporadically, potentially reducing the number of conflicts cyclists and schoolchildren.

The bike riders admitted that cyclists need to follow the rules of the road, and that increased enforcement against lawbreaking bike riders might be a good thing. "When it comes down to basically sharing limited space with each other, if you have more potential to cause harm, you have more responsibility," said Samponaro, who insisted that cyclists should aim to befriend pedestrians, not terrorize them, as Abraham had described. "Why would we recreate the same model of behavior with pedestrians [that we have with cars]…we should be working together, not against each other."

For his part, Abraham emphasized that the Hasidic community doesn't oppose the Bedford Avenue bike lane because of scantily-clad cyclists or community politics, but because cyclists ride through the neighborhood dangerously and occasionally hit pedestrians. He blamed the city for poorly planning the Bedford Avenue lane, and insisted it hadn't been discussed with the community, though supporters said it had. "Biking is a new issue, nobody knows how to deal with it yet," added Abraham, who said his wife was hospitalized after being struck by a bicyclist.

When asked if there is any chance the Hasidic community could come to support a bike lane on Bedford Avenue, Abraham said: "Never going to sell." Referring to other existing lanes in the neighborhood on Kent Avenue, Wythe Avenue, and Berry Street, he added: "In order to make this a bargaining chip, I would take another one away, make it two [with bike lanes] and two [without bike lanes]."

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Ben Muessig in News on January 26, 2010 8:24 AM

Comments [rss]

dgeee

The Hasids can't double park in the bike lane, so they had the bike lane removed. End of story.

wow 14th street

Ve Do Not Vant our young boys looking at

the shiksta'a butt on dem bikes in our hood.

LB

Who got those stats that Bedford Avenue is the longest road in Brooklyn ? That cannot be accurate . Somebody needs to recheck those stats . As for the debate, There shouldn't be one at all . The streets are for everyone, Not just the stinky in the summertime jews .

Greenpoint60

an old Polish man who lived in Warsaw before World War 2 once told me "The houses were owned by the Jews and all we owned the public streets" Today in Warsaw the Poles own their houses and the streets they walk on.

LB

Something for me to chew on huh ! Thank you Ol Wise One ! But the sad fact is, In this world those for whom Talk seem to do the walking, While those whom Act get results ! Sadly, Bitching and complaining about other's Habits, and Lifestyles while using Religion as a backdrop seem to be an effective weapon for the religious sect within the Jewish Community. Oh and having a Politician or four in pocket helps to !

Greenpoint60

The young folks that live in Williamsburg pay high rent to the Black Hats in those rat infested lofts. Take a trip down to south Williamsburg, here is a lot of brand new housing going up for the Black Hats, they know how to pull the right strings in City Hall and get tax breaks for those new apartments. The Polish are smart they don’t deal with the Black Hats. The Polish have a credit union that finances the mortgages for homeowners and loans for small businesses. The credit union was set up in the 1970’s because the major banks redlined Greenpoint.

hunter.blatherer

Sorry for the long post, but I have something quite relevant to add here, from a rare perspective.

This is but the first step in a strategy that shows some hope. Baruch is a reasonable mediator/organizer, with ties in both communities. And a lot media coverage has been overblown ; the hasidics' objections have been mischaractorized in the media, and so have the cyclists'. Only in dialogue (a respected Jewish tradition), can both sides break through the filtered images and get to know each other as 3-dimensional people. I hope more of these events are scheduled. (full disclosure, I don't not know Baruch, but I know many of the people he works with. These ain't you hipster trustafarians. These are people who;ve been working since we hit puberty (like I have) and know a thing or two about a thing or two). So I have no compulsion endorsing anything Baruch wants to do. Isaac Abraham too, is coming from a workable place, I think. And another thing, a lot of people on both sides of this debate come from a Jewish background. This helps.

A lot of people don't understand the (ok, limited) intersections between the communities. Art Bar ran a Hasids and Hipsters night for a while.

And there's this:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/76545/trembling-before-g-d

The Orthodox are not a monolith, and neither are the cyclists. I've seen Hasids (full grown on bikes in Williamsburg) And I always yiield to pedestrians, even if they jawyalk.

(exits stage to strains of "Can't we be friends, can't we just be friends" - Stevie Wonder)

nycbiker

for HunterBlatherer:

in a perfect world these groups could learn to cooperate.

but the whole MO of this sect is tradition for the sake of tradition. their real opposition to the bike lane has to do with the symbolic value of the bike: individual freedom

that's a dangerous symbol for their kids to see.

I suspect Abraham participated in the debate was for its

PR value--the guy's running for office.

hunter.blatherer

First off: Abraham! I owe you a pen. You disappeared before I could return it.

OK, what were you saying? Oh yeah, you made some very good points!

I have some experience working with public officials, and finding solutions that profit both. Not always successful, but life is about learning.

Perhaps we could talk about this offline. Find my contact here if you're interested:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/huntergather/

Oh, and from whom would Isaac get good PR from? Not the Hasids.

hunter.blatherer

ps: I wasn't at the debate. I borrowed the pen in the summer.

hunter.blatherer

Second paragraph, in the middle, should read: "These ain't your hipster trustafarians." I don't want to be a jelly doughnut for a typo.

Baruch

I love most hasidim. My issue is only with the mayor who catered to hardliners to get himself elected. I would love to keep the pressure up on the mayor until they get an independent investigator to look at this issue and how he corrupted the system to get re-elected to his illegitimate 3rd term.

dgeee

The city is run by Jews; why is anyone surprised the Hasids could get a bike lane removed?

LB

And a couple hundred bus stops, There own bus routes, that stop @ city bus stops .

nycbiker

a lot of cyclists, regardless of their religion (or lack thereof), held their noses and voted for bloomberg, because he put in so many bike lanes.

so it was especially offensive to learn that, weeks before the election, he convened a meeting to secretly assure Satmar leaders that he would remove the Bedford Avenue bike lane, if they voted for him.

he knew he already had the cyclists' vote, so how legal was it for his campaign to sell off a crucial piece of the city's bike infrastructure in order to secure the vote of one insular religious sect?

how would New Yorkers feel if bike lanes on Atlantic Avenue were removed because of concerns from 'conservative' Muslims upset about scantily-clad lady cyclists?

it's not the issue of one bike lane; the issue is why this sect is allowed to make its own laws which supercede those of the city and the state.

eat vegans

Because they own the area. They have for years. They get to say what happens. That's how it works. If you want to paint bike lanes, go to your own neighborhood that you own all the buildings in and have been paying govnt officials off for the last 70 years and do it there. Get it?

nycbiker

I commend Heather and Baruch and Issac for having the chutzpa (sp?) to stage this debate and get these issues out to the neighborhood.

As a cyclist, I'm concerned for my own safety when I see scores of yeshiva school buses repeatedly turning into bike lanes, at an angle, to stop and let students alight.

maybe they're stopping at an angle because their own lane is blocked by a double-parked minivan?

Heather mentioned this safety hazard in the debate.

For an article on this issue, I'd like to post an 'author's query'.

does anyone have any photographic proof of this possible traffic violation occuring?

it would seem to me that school buses, even if they're Hasidic school buses, must be required to stop parallel to the curb, and not at an angle obstructing the bike path. In some cases, I've noticed the Hasidic school buses stopping like this for no other reason than to specifically cut off cyclists who might pass the bus on the driver's side (which would be dangerous as well).

any replies to my account would be much appreciated, and kept confidential

eat vegans

Just like the San Gennaro Feast will NEVER get shut down on Mulberry despite complaints year after year, Hasidic run Williamsburg will ALWAYS have traffic issues. They own the neighborhood. Call it mafia if you want. Welcome to New York.