Is NYC a good biking city? (New York, Cortland: co-op, home, neighborhoods)

[ako]

I live in Taipei and it's a great city to ride a bike in. There aren't too many cars and there's space for bikers, at some places in the city there are even bike trails, and drivers don't get mad at you if you ride on the road.

Is New York a good biking city or is there simply too much traffic (in some areas) for somebody to ride a bike in?

[ddhboy]

Its managable, but the city isn't too bike friendly. For one, its illegal to ride your bikes on the sidewalks here in the city, which isn't uncommon, but you're forced to ride in the streets. That means that you're thrown into one way avenues where motorists are none to pleased to have someone riding on a bike next to their car. This is especially true in Manhattan where there are some famous stories of taxi drivers knocking bikers off of their bikes and driving away. There are some parts of the outer boroughs, most notably Brooklyn and Queens where neighborhoods have bike paths, and bridges like the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge have their own bike paths or are assumed to be bike paths, but they get very little respect and it isn't uncommon to see cars parked on bikeways.

That said, Biking here is only for the brave and the skilled.

[oberon_1]

NYC is good for suicidal bikers. I see them all the time dodging the heavy traffic and I'm always holding my breath, until the next Kamikaze zoops 5" of my car, hurrying in his suicidal mission... Some of them smile back when seeing my wide open mouth, unable to make any sound..

[OyCrumbler]

I've actually biked in Taipei, and I also do so in NYC. I would say that biking is better here than in Taipei, especially if you live in northwest/west Brooklyn or midtown/downtown/Upper West Side in Manhattan. Biking in the Bronx is a fair bit rougher due to roads being in poor shape, aggressive drivers, and a pretty big lack of bike lanes. I don't know much about biking in Queens (though it seems like waterfront Queens is pretty good) or Staten Island.

NYC's biking community has been growing at a really brisk rate and along with that there's been an increase in biking advocacy with a lot more separated bike lanes. This year, Transportation Alternatives, perhaps NYC's largest bicycling advocacy group, is pushing for even more bike-friendly paths on Manhattans east side. So, overall, I say biking in NYC is a very viable option. My only really big gripe about biking is how little intermodal support there is for bikers (bike racks on buses, subway cars that make carrying bikes easier, etc.).

Here's a little bit more info, courtesy of wikipedia:
Cycling in New York City - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Fred314X]

Better than it used to be. New York City, incidentally, is home to the first dedicated bike path in the United States: five and a half miles long, the full length of Ocean Parkway. It was opened in 1895, and still going strong.

[Chava61]

I have seen a dedicated bike path going to the Floyd Bennett Park in Brooklyn.

[bluedog2]

Originally Posted by OyCrumbler

.... Biking in the Bronx is a fair bit rougher due to roads being in poor shape, aggressive drivers, and a pretty big lack of bike lanes. ....

Actually,that's not true at all.There is a great bikeway that cuts across the entire borough.It goes from Riverdale,through Van Cortlandt Park,along Mosholu Parkway,through Bronx Park( Botanical Garden) and then along Pelham Parkway to Pelham Bay Park and City Island.The roads are great and virtually the entire 11 miles is through parkland.It starts with views of the Hudson River palisades ,goes through a botanical garden and ends at the beach. It is called the Mosholu-Pelham Greenway and is an official city bicycling greenway.It is filled with cyclists almost all the time.

It is also part of the East Coast Greenway,a developing 3000 mile greenway that will extend from Maine to Florida when complete.http://www.greenway.org/

[OyCrumbler]

Originally Posted by bluedog2

Actually,that's not true at all.There is a great bikeway that cuts across the entire borough.It goes from Riverdale,through Van Cortlandt Park,along Mosholu Parkway,through Bronx Park( Botanical Garden) and then along Pelham Parkway to Pelham Bay Park and City Island.The roads are great and virtually the entire 11 miles is through parkland.It starts with views of the Hudson River palisades ,goes through a botanical garden and ends at the beach. It is called the Mosholu-Pelham Greenway and is an official city bicycling greenway.It is filled with cyclists almost all the time.

It is also part of the East Coast Greenway,a developing 3000 mile greenway that will extend from Maine to Florida when complete.East Coast Greenway

Sorry, I was thinking more about commuting rather than leisure biking. The few times I've ridden through the Bronx (going to the food co-op or getting to the zoo from upper Manhattan), I've been less than impressed. The bikeway you mentioned sounds great, it's just that I've never had reason to use it.

[ako]

Originally Posted by OyCrumbler

Sorry, I was thinking more about commuting rather than leisure biking. The few times I've ridden through the Bronx (going to the food co-op or getting to the zoo from upper Manhattan), I've been less than impressed. The bikeway you mentioned sounds great, it's just that I've never had reason to use it.

Yeah sorry I wasn't specific, I'm talking about commuting biking. Do many people do it? Do you often see people riding to and from school or work on bikes, or is it all very different in every borough?

Thanks for the responses, I didn't think wikipedia would have a page on it, biking in NYC actually sounds safer now.

[Platinum333]

Nope, it really isn't.

Yes, they have bike lanes and parks...but it is SO crowded here that you are constantly trying to evade being hit...or hitting someone. It sucks here when it comes to outdoor fun.