Brooklynites push city to switch gears on proposed bike lane over safety concerns

Hundreds of community members have signed an online petition against a proposed bike lane in Windsor Terrace, arguing it will increase traffic and collisions on an already dangerous, truck-heavy corridor.

Nearly 300 petitioners say they support new cycling infrastructure and propose an alternate route: one-way bike lanes along East Third and East Fourth Streets instead of the Department of Transportation’s proposed lane on McDonald Avenue, a major thoroughfare.

Supporters and opponents of the bike lane overwhelmingly agree on one point: McDonald Avenue feels unsafe, and DOT should take action to reduce crashes.

Between 2020 and 2024, nine bicyclists were injured along this stretch of McDonald Avenue, according to New York City’s Vision Zero data. A nearby stretch of Prospect Avenue recorded just one crash during the same period, the project found.

“So [DOT] is looking at that and they’re saying, ‘How can we turn this street into a safer one?’” said Alexa Sledge, communications director at nonprofit advocacy group Transportation Alternatives. “One of the best and most reviewed ways to do that is putting up a protected bike lane.”

Protected bike lanes include a physical separation between cyclists and moving traffic, such as a parking lane or barrier. These lanes reduced crash risk by 34 percent, according to a DOT study from 2021.

DOT delivered its proposal to Community Board 7 in June, but has yet to schedule a public meeting to gather broader feedback from residents, according to Katie Walsh of the board’s transportation committee.

With no clear timeline to move forward with the proposed lane or an alternative, DOT is also running out of time to comply with a 2019 City Council ordinance mandating the city build 250 miles of protected bike lanes by 2026. Transportation Alternatives, which tracks installations, reports the city has built about 98 miles so far toward that goal.

No cycling routes currently run through Windsor Terrace between 10th Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway. Cyclists traveling between Prospect Park South or Kensington and Windsor Terrace or South Slope without looping around Prospect Park must do so without protection.

Windsor Terrace resident and cyclist Martha Rose said she refuses to bike on McDonald Avenue out of fear.

The road is “a menace to my life,” Rose said.

To install the two-way protected bike lane, DOT would remove a lane of traffic in each direction, reducing McDonald Avenue to two lanes from four. Petitioners argue the road is already congested, and losing lanes would make it worse.

The stretch of McDonald Avenue between 10th Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway saw 16,887 vehicles per day on average in 2024, according to DOT data. A similar stretch of road across Green-Wood Cemetery recorded 8,330 vehicles per day last year.

Petitioners say they know the risks along McDonald Avenue firsthand.

“It’s never been safe,” said Troy Martin, the Windsor Terrace resident who created the petition. He described an incident in which his child was struck by an electric bike while crossing McDonald Avenue, as a semi-trailer blocked the nearest intersection.

“By increasing the amount of truck traffic there, and then mixing Citi Bike riders and buses on top of that, it just becomes even more dangerous,” Martin said.

Martin, who bikes and drives in the city, proposed an alternative route along East Third and East Fourth Streets that he argues would create a longer, safer bike route. He said local cyclists and delivery riders already use those streets to avoid McDonald Avenue.

National street-design guidance generally calls for about 6.5 to 7 feet of rideable width for a one-way protected bike lane. East Third and East Fourth Streets are about 30 feet wide, which opponents of the McDonald Avenue plan say is too narrow to accommodate street parking, a travel lane, and a protected bike lane.

Conventional bike lanes without a protective barrier would be enough on these residential streets, Martin argued.

McDonald Avenue could stand to lose some of its width, Sledge said.

“The best way to reduce speeding is to create a narrow road, and the best way to create a narrow road is putting in protected bike lanes,” she said.

On Prospect Park West, three out of every four vehicles drove above the speed limit before a bike lane was installed, according to a DOT radar study. After installation, only one out of every five vehicles exceeded the speed limit, the study found.

But some community members say the city’s emphasis on reducing car speed misses their point: improve cyclist safety without worsening vehicle congestion.

“They say, ‘listen, it’ll be safer for everyone, because it’s been shown that if we put bike lanes in, it slows traffic,’” said Patricia Jones, a Windsor Terrace resident whose adult children are cyclists. “No f---ing s---. Of course it’s gonna slow traffic. To a stop.”

The petition against the McDonald Avenue proposal is not anti-bike, Jones insisted. “It’s about safety.”

DOT declined to make staff available for an interview.