Bike Path Bollard 1, Car 0

"Ey yo, your honor, dat **** suckin' bollard came outta nowherez and...marone!...did this to mah baby. Since when did ********** assed bikers getz moh rights den a taxpayah like me. Dat ain't right! Badabing!"

I say, line all the sidewalks in all five boroughs with curb-side bollards like this. Let the motorheads have their demolition derby and leave the rest of us out of their car-nage.

you disgusting americans and your friggin cars.

No thanks to any of you, I found this on Google maps. Sorry, but it looks like a normal street (for cars) to me. Why did they have to use a double-yellow line and not paint it the usual green or something? Out-of-staters never know where they are going but nobody ever seems to take that into consideration when designing anything in this city (MTA, I'm looking at you). At least the bollard did its job, but I don't blame the driver for thinking he could drive there (if he did).

most if not the entire westside bicycle greenway has the double yellow line. I just checked my youtube vid I made to check. I think the new drivers would just assume it's an access road or something, since it's right next to the westside highway. I think it's a little narrower than a auto lane. so if you do get on it, the auto would actually straddle the yellow line.

I think this just goes to show the complete disregard drivers have for cyclists and pedestrians in NYC. I ride my bike everywhere in the city and often find it is SAFER to ride in lanes with traffic than in unprotected bike lanes (such as Fifth and Sixth avenue). I have also found a few times a driver in protected bike lanes (8th & 9th Aves) using them for parking, loading or as a taxi stand!! Please provide a little respect to those of us choosing not to pollute our city with more carbon emissions. How did we ever turn down congestion pricing?

http://theguardrailblog.blogspot.com

"Please provide a little respect to those of us choosing not to pollute our city with more carbon emissions."

You know, your little mantra is wearing thin. You think riding your little toy is saving the world? ROTFL

If you really cared about the environment, you would support mass transit, which is much more environmentally friendly.

Further, I own neither bike or car, but let me tell you that drivers are a lot more respectful and law-abiding than the rogue riders than plague our city.

If you want respect, YOU must show respect first: stop at red lights, get off the effing sidewalk if you are over 14, and stop going the wrong direction.

Otherwise, no one gives a shit what happens to you.

@thefacts - seems like you belong on the sidewalk for acting like you are 14. I am a firm believer in mass transit, which is why I do not own a car. How do you think I get around when it rains? Secondly, bikes are much more "green" as they do not put ANY carbon emissions in to the air. You see, mass transit, although much cleaner than cars relies on electricity. DO you know how electricity is made? The is a nasty UI plant on the East River along the 59th St Bridge where I ride my bike daily and am forced to breath in the exhaust from cars standing idle during rush hour. Do your homeowork.

I also agree many cyclists need a course in road etiquette. I however follow the laws to the best of my ability when I am not put in a situation where doing so puts my life in danger.

@StedyRuckus - Glad to see someone is doing their homework!! :-)

http://theguardrailblog.blogspot.com

"bikes are much more "green" as they do not put ANY carbon emissions in to the air. "

How much carbon used to make your little toy? Huh? How much?

Secondly, mass transit will run no matter what. So, electricity is being expended whether the train is empty or crowded.

By not contributing to MTA, by self-indulgently riding around on your toy and using our infrastructure for free, you are putting the MTA further into insolvency, making service worse, and making people more likely to use their cars to commute.

Believe it or not, more people own cars than bikes. So, by not supporting mass transit, you only add to its failure and encourage more automobiles!

"I however follow the laws to the best of my ability "

Such glibness!

In other words, like 99% of cyclists, you break the law whenever it suits you.

Isn't that correct?

@thefacts - The only thing wearing thin is the repetitive unsupported blather from an anonymous entity calling itself "thefacts" whenever anything regarding bicycles is mentioned.

You sir, are a complete moron. Public transit is not more environmentally friendly than a bicycle. In fact, the only more environmentally friendly mode of transportation than bicycling is walking. (or teleportation... but you're not up on that), and that's just because of the materials needed to actually construct a bicycle.

Mass transit is the most environmentally friendly way to the move massive amounts of people though, but don't be so stupid as to think that its a totally clean method.

In the first paragraph, you write:

"Public transit is not more environmentally friendly than a bicycle."

Immediately in the second paragraph, you completely CONTRADICT yourself - AGREEING with me that

"Mass transit is the most environmentally friendly way to the move massive amounts of people though,"

How did you ever graduate?

Furthermore, while I agree that a lot of bicyclists need a course in respectful and lawful riding, the truth of the matter is, there are still more rogue drivers out there, and the biggest difference is that rogue drivers kill pedestrians and bicyclists.

There's one blog I'll never click on.

Can someone post a better picture? I have no idea what is supposed to be happening and it looks like a 2 way street with a pylon in the middle.

Maybe they shouldn't have double yellow "no passing" lines down the middle.

That really says "street" to me.

I dont care greatly, but a bunch of plastic seperators would prevent cars from driving on the path and not cause all that damage to the car

oh, nevermind

'the plastic pylon didn't stop him—'

btw, are those Connecticut plates on that SUV? There's nothing in the world worse than a CT driver in an SUV in New York.

It looks like there's plenty of space to drive around that thing if you really wanted to kill a biker or two.

The driver had to be moving at a pretty good clip and likely trying to make a fast U-turn. If that was the case I hope he/she was injured.

That would buff right out, right?

but really be careful of the garbage/construction vehicles who cross that path to get to the waterfront work sites or garages.

A papier-mache front end isn't a bad thing, right?

A little bondo, some sandpaper and a can of primer, it'll be just like new!

I know this is Gothamist, but I know a guy who hangs out in the parking lot at Shoprite on Passaic Avenue in East Newark, NJ who'll clean it up for $150 tops!

@amg2000 - Too bad the driver's brain can't be repaired with bondo.

nothing for nothing, but i could see how even a sober person could accidentally end up on the bikepath. as a bicyclist and a motorist, i've ridden/driven near them and have mistaken them for 'real' vehicular roadways- theyre almost as wide and are usually painted identical to them as seen in photo).

maybe TA could consider petitioning the city to paint the lines to a color NOT found on roadways and adding/moving the bollards to one in each lane of the bikepath on each side of the intersection versus just 1 in the middle of the bikepath wihch looks like any other NYC street with a divider in the middle to separate vehicular traffic.

The pedestrian/bike path is fine as it is. If drivers accidentally turned on to it every day, I might agree that it needs some additional demarcation, but it doesn't happen very often.

From the looks of the damage to the vehicle, the driver was going too fast, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were staring at a cell phone or otherwise distracted when they drove into a pylon painted with yellow stripes.

It happens almost everyday. I see it at least once or twice a week for the hour I spend on it nearly everyday, which means it's most likely happening during the 23 hours a day I'm not happening. I've flagged down 1 or 2 of these people and asked if they knew that they were in a bike lane. Their response is typically something along the lines of "we wanted to turn onto XXrd/th Street, but missed the turn." They know it's wrong, but they figure it's no big deal to do it.

Sorry, poor editing. Should read "which means it's most likely happening during the 23 hours a day I'm not there."

Well except for the fact that there's landscape greenery on either side, which you don't normally find right along the roadside... not without parked cars between the two.

You can see this Moron was turning on to the bike path and by the way it's crumpled the driver must have been going at least 15-20mph... When will the price of Gas rise to $9.00 a gallon?! That will get most of these stupid drivers off the Road!!

An average bollard has more sense than an average driver.

Rich people can be just as dumb as regular folks.