The NYC Dept. of Transportation reports that a recent survey shows that more bicyclists are crossing the East River than ever before.

East River bridge bikeways are in the best shape in memory, with newly renovated paths open on the Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges. The Manhattan Bridge had no bike or footway for decades, while the Williamsburg’s was decrepit and un-lit during the 1970s and 1980s. The bike lane on the Queensboro Bridge was appropriated for car traffic at various times during the bridge’s reconstruction during the 1980s and 1990s, but has been open for walking and cycling on a 24-7 for over five years now. With these conditions, and this year’s subway and bus fare increase, it’s not surprising that city cycling is robust.

NYCDOT told Newsday its September East River counts show over 4,000 cyclists per day using the bridge bikeways, and claimed it was a 31% increase over 2002. The spike is based primarily on numbers showing that cyclists using the Queensboro Bridge more than doubled. These big jumps are undoubtedly rooted in the fact that the city conducts its survey one day a year, subjecting the data to any number of anomalies. NYC DOT should exercise care in presenting such numbers to the press, and collect bike/pedestrian data on a more rigorous basis. Bridge and street counts by Transportation Alternatives often find more bikes than DOT surveys.

NYC DOT also said numbers of cyclists crossing 50th Street in Manhattan had increased.

The city’s counts followed a press conference by Mayor Bloomberg announcing progress on greenway construction and connections around the Manhattan waterfront. The Mayor opened a new segment of the perimeter greenway along the Harlem River and inaugurated a series of uptown on-street bike lanes that will serve as interim connectors between the very popular West Side bikeway and the Harlem River segments. A big obstacle to completing the perimeter greenway is getting it past the United Nations. A section also remains to be addressed along the Upper West Side where Route 9A squeezes very close to the water’s edge.

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