As both a driver and a biker…

As both a driver and a biker I am strongly against this proposal. Cars are by far the least efficient form of transportation, and it is insane to be spending more money ripping out existing infrastructure that provides a viable alternative. Moreover, every single street mentioned in this proposal has a subway running underneath it which transports FAR more people per day than any highway every could. We need to incentive people to use the appropriate transportation option, rather than removing alternative options to cars. Whether this be subsidizing subway rides, tolling the roads, improving subway service, keeping bike lanes clear year round.

Adding more car lanes has been shown time and time again to create induced demand. I have extreme doubts that adding these car lanes would do anything to improve congestion, especially since cars will often stop in the extra lane, creating hundreds of random bottlenecks everywhere on the street. Moreover, removing bike lanes does not remove the bikers. They will continue to use these streets, and now instead cars will be stuck behind them.

I have personally almost been struck by cars multiple times, both walking and biking around the city. Each of these times has been by a driver speeding around trying to get from point A to B as quickly as possible. Many people die every year from this every year in the city. Adding bike lanes provides safety to some of the most vulnerable road users. Moreover, reducing the number of lanes calms the traffic and makes reckless driving more difficult. As a pedestrian and biker I feel safer having slower moving traffic in the city. As a driver, I feel more calm when people are not speeding in and out of lanes trying to get one car forward.

I say all this recognizing that cars are still a viable form of transportation and some people rely on them for mobility. The solution is not to serve this one mode of transportation, but to help clear the roads of cars that do not need to be there. I strongly believe that there is an alternative solution that is both cheaper, and moves more people, but we will never find it if we do not explore alternative solutions.