Bike Routes Reach Critical Mass

But Critical Mass isn’t coming to Staten Island anytime soon:

When the DOT interposed them on Bay Street, critics cried that the meandering bike routes were, at best, a waste of money. The fact that it took only months for the pounding of traffic to just about wear away the paint in spots only compounded the skepticism.

Now the city is adding more routes, this time on North and South Railroad avenues, and the reaction is edging toward disbelief.

“Shared lanes” were installed on Bay Street last winter, to serve as a navigational aid to cyclists looking to connect to bike lanes on Capodanno Boulevard and Richmond Terrace. The chevrons and bike markings painted on the asphalt also are intended to keep cyclists a safe distance from car doors that open in the parking lane, and to remind motorists that must share the road with bike riders, who have an equal right to use the street.

. . .

City Councilman James Oddo (R-Mid-Island/Brooklyn) said he encourages cycling as a form of exercise and isn’t opposed to setting aside bike lanes and routes in theory.

“It’s not about bike lanes, per se,” he said. “It’s about misguided priorities.” He criticized the installation earlier this month of another bike route on Jefferson Avenue in Dongan Hills, which leads to the North and South Railroad facilities, because he believes the area’s narrow streets are too dangerous for cyclists. In addition, he continues to push for improved road conditions for cyclists and drivers alike.

“I’m not quite sure what the obsession is with bike lanes in this administration. I just wish they were obsessed with smooth streets,” Oddo said.