Anxieties Abound Over Bike Lanes Slated for Bell, Bay Terrace

The City Council this week mandated that NYPD keep track of bicycle deaths, as Northeast Queens residents have expressed misgivings about bike lanes coming to Bell Blvd.  

“After looking at the map of proposed routes, it appears that whoever created these paths has not travelled the routes themselves,” said Roz Sackoff, a resident of Bay Terrace.

If the Department of Transportation moves ahead with their plans, there will be marked bike lanes on parts of Bell Blvd., 212th St., 39th Ave., 32nd Ave. 26th Ave., 35th Ave, and the Clearview Expwy. service road.

There were 18 bicycle fatalities last year, according to DOT data.

A study done by the agency between 1996 and 2005 implicated large vehicles in 32 percent of bike fatalities, though they make up 5-17 percent of vehicles on the road.  

Sackoff says she is concerned for the safety of bikers mingling with busses on 212th St., and 32nd Ave., which are bus routes.

“This is a curvy two way street with limited sight in some places,” said Sackoff of 212th St., also pointing out that there are many driveway exits from home garages that would cross paths with cyclists.

The proposed 26th Ave. bike path, which is near the Bay Terrace Shopping Center, would be harsh travelling on two wheels, she believes.

“I can definitely understand that a bus route would be a bad route for a bike lane, because the busses would have to keep coming in and out of the lane,” said Joani Emerson, whose husband, Jerry Emerson, owns in Douglaston, where the two met.

For Emerson, Bell Blvd., of all the new routes, would make for the most dangerous biking.

Council Member Dan Halloran, R-Bayside, had separate concerns about bike lanes on Bell.

“The last thing we need is to put up bike lanes —which nobody is going to use— to stifle business and take up parking spots,” said Halloran.

“To me, my worst nightmare is somebody opens the car door,” said Emerson, adding, “Somebody opens a car door and you go flying.” 

An avid biker—who isn't against bike lanes at large—Emerson said she’s come close to a wipe-out crash many times on Bell, and has had to be wary of people double parking and making illegal turns. “That’s a crazy area,” she said. “I’d rather be on a side street.”

The DOT did not respond to a request for comment on how the routes were designated.