From reading various articles in the New York City paper I got
the feeling that it is those in the media that hates these bike lanes......they are just
trying to sway the public towards their view.

No one, not even JSK herself, has proposed that bikes 'replace' cars, or mass transit.

Also, bear in mind that the PPW bike lane was put in at the request of the Community Board in order to deal with issues on PPW. There has been no credible evidence that there has been any negative impact on cars (except for speeding and double-parking).

The animus against bike lanes, seems to me sometimes to be a case of, "I'm not happy, why should you be happy?".

Peter
http://inklake.typepad.com

you don't have to be able to ride 20 miles to work for a bike to be useful. Sometimes you just need to pick up some milk or bagels and car is really overkill. Also in less dense parts of Brooklyn and Queens, a bike could be a great way to get to a subway station that is too far to walk to. Bike lanes make that stuff much more viable.

Damn all those Park Slope Republicans!

Why doesn't everyone just get a bike? We make traffic conditions better by building bike lanes, so people can ride bikes. Is it that people are just too lazy to ride a bike? Even considering the fact that bicycling is easier than walking?

get real James. there is a shitload of city outside of the wealthy/trendy enclaves. salt of the earth types live and work in this city too.

for instance, queens alone is 109 square miles. bikes don't cut it when you've got 20 miles to ride and get to work dripping in sweat and smelling like a bum's nutsack.

public transportation is also slow, unreliable, cramped and often extremely frustrating. you feel the moments of your life drip away while your head is stuffed in some guy's arm pit, a teenager is yelling into their phone, and someone's breath proudly declares that they ate kimchi for breakfast and lunch.

and if you've never experienced the joy of waiting for an outerboro bus in heat, cold, rain, and snow i suggest you try it sometime...its just delightful.

I have experienced all that. So what? Better than the stress of dealing with a car, gas, insurance and so on.
Also have you ever actually been to PPW? If you look at yes one lane of traffic was taken over by the bike lane. BUT there is parking still available for all the cars between the bike lane and the lanes still open to traffic. So I am confused that any type of parking was taking away? There hasn't, only one lane of traffic was taken away, again, no parking. Also I never see traffic on PPW except during certain hours which is a given in any community.
Have you experienced a bike lane yourself lately? If you still hate it after you've tried it, fine you have your opinion but don't write all this while texting from behind the steering wheel. It doesn't resonate worth a damn.

Well so what?
Keep driving your car then.
But don't tell me I shouldn't be allowed to ride my bike in the safety of the new bike lanes because you don't like them.
It's too bad that they inconvenience you. Deal with it.

- From a Brooklyn car-owner who only drives when he has to.

hello strawman 1 and 2! the car vs. bike lane ultimatum is tired. where did i even MENTION bike lanes? and i don't commute by car, thank you.

since both of you forgot to bring your reading comprehension skills to this thread, i was responding to the elitist notion "Why doesn't everyone just get a bike?"

now, Booboo, old chap, if you want to get back on the topic of class and geography and transportation in NYC i'm all ears.

and no, KR your highness, not everyone can just move, as you so gracefully command above. perhaps from your entitled perspective that is a viable option but not everyone who works in Manhattan can live in Park Slope.

i am not interested at all by the tedious Prospect Park bike lane wars. the militant firebrands on both sides of the argument bore me. doesn't it get old dancing in circles? beating your chests instead of working together? its called "selfishness." your rant is gibberish.

I try to stay out of these debates - however the sheer ineptitude of a lot of the biker lobby just astounds me.

Fuck bikes and cars - Why doesn't everyone just stop going where they need to go?

Well, riding a bike isn't *always* practical - for example, I don't ride when I have to wear business attire on a given day - and there are lots of people who may live too far from their jobs for riding to be a viable option.

Unless your comment was a joke or some sort of jab that went over my head - in which case, never mind :)

If you love the bike lanes, clearly you hate America, you America-hater you!

Oh yeah? OH YEAH?? Well, I'm American silicone rubber, you're Chinese glue, whatever you babble bounces cleanly off me and picks up paint lead before it sticks to you! NYAAH!

isn't the point of bike lanes so there will be less cars on the road? I don't understand how that would increase traffic...

people are dumb.

Conservatives aren't really about conserving. They're in bed with the oil and car companies.

YUP -- they're "conserving" their elitist lifestyles!

And heard this morning Nuclear Power lobbyists secured from the government 18 billion in loans while asking and also securing that solar and wind energy receive 0 in loans.

Actually, that may be the stated reason, but that's not what happens. Bikes are impractical for most people. The number of cars in this city has not changed since the bike lanes were installed. That's because most bike riders come off mass transit. The way this poll question was worded, with lengthy explanations which aren't even factual, is why this result was obtained. Fact is that bike lanes don't cut down on pollution and it's typically healthy people that choose to ride them, not the ones that need exercise.

"The number of cars in this city has not changed since the bike lanes were installed."

That isn't true at all. The amount of road congestion has been directly correlated with gas prices & the economy.

The amount of cars has changed, and varies from year to year.

All these people responded to something you just made up. good job.

One cannot state as fact that "Bikes are impractical for most people". I think it's more accurate to say that "bikes are impractical for many people".

But then, considering the expense and difficulties of owning a car in NYC, I think it's accurate to say that cars are impractical for many people, too.

And when I look at the congestion, injuries, deaths, noise, dirt and pollution, cost of road maintanance, and the large amount of public space cars take up for parking, I think that cars cause a lot of trouble and cost for everybody in this city.

I understand the frustration of the Anti-traffic calming camp. For as long as anybody can remember we've been dealing with the congestion cars create by making accommodations for more cars. Judging from what's happening in cities all over the world, I reckon that way of thinking is coming to an end.

Public space is public, and drivers are going to have to learn to share. (In the case of this city, they're giving up less than 2% of road space for bike lanes). Sorry, but that's progress.