Brooklyn by Bike

Bike Pal is a really simple website that lets you post meetup messages. Just fill in the following sentence on the website, “Hi, my name is ___ and my email is ___ want to have a (moderate, leisurely, snail-like) ride on a (road, mountain, cruiser, BMX) bike near ___. ” hit submit and you are off!

We think it’s a great way to make new bike loving friend’s or even meetup for a safe commute into work. Check it out at Bike Pal. [via @JollySonali, thanks!]

Hey blog friends! Some of you know that I’ve been out of the country for a few weeks, traveling all sorts of cities in India. So far I’ve been to Calcutta, the Sunderbans, Agra, New Delhi and Varanasi. It’s been fun though the heat here is intense, topping 115 degrees on some days. Bike culture is alive and well and the Dutch bicycle is dominate for good reason. I bet you didn’t know so much could be carried by bike.

[via BikingBis]

Just to give you an idea…

More photos of my own photos up as soon as possible.

It’s like a double slap. With a 30 day unlimited subway card going up to $103/month we are going to see a lot more bike commuter traffic on the roads. I am personally excited to see more bikes on the road as Streetsblog recently published an article showing more bike traffic equals safer roads. Now if only everyone would exhibit a bit more cycling etiquette to keep NYC streets safe and moving.

After the MTA’s Finance Committee voted yesterday to approve a package of severe fare increases (hello, $103 monthly unlimited Metrocard) and drastic service cuts (good-bye, W and Z lines; farewell, bus routes—see the PDF of NYC Transit changes here), MTA board member Allen Cappelli said, “There are 45 hours left before this disaster goes into effect.” The MTA board is scheduled to vote on the fare hikes tomorrow. [via Gothamist]

And to top it all off, our own mayor Bloomberg says he doesn’t support bicycles on the subway even though the MTA allows it. I guess we really are taking it to the streets. [via Streetsblog] Want some change? Check out BikeBlogNYC’s Billy for Mayor campaign donation post.

Let’s talk about this issue that has been plaguing the streets of Brooklyn for sometime now…particularly the street of Kent Ave. in Williamsburg. The Hasidic community is complaining that they have nowhere to part their giant minivans because of the new installation. First they threatened to block the streets. Then they put this detour sign up stating ”bus drivers will be blocking the road and the bike lane when picking up and dropping off children.”

All in the name of removing the bike lane. WTF?  Bike lanes make neighborhoods more habitable and safe for communities! Because of all the commotion, the DOT has now replaced the no stopping signs with no standing signs and bike lane advocates continue to insist that this is a much needed growth in New York City. DOT spokesman Scot Gastel spoke to the Gothamist.

The lanes enhance safety in a neighborhood with one of the largest and fastest-growing bicycling populations in the City, and they are a key step in building the Greenway along the Brooklyn waterfront. The project was developed with the support of the community board, and we have worked closely with the community to address their concerns. We will continue to identify locations to increase parking along side streets in the near future.

I know it is hard to acknowledge that regardless of the bike lane, parking will continue to become a problem as population grows in NYC. However the bike lane actually helps move us forward by encouraging alternate methods of transportation. I do sense that there is a bit of a class war going on here between the old guard of the neighborhood and the new hipster gentrifiers and unfortunately – though it’s not so bad in this case – we know who always wins.

[via The Gothamist]