A weekly roundup of good deeds, missteps, heroic feats and epic failures in the tri-state region and beyond.
WINNERS
New York State Senator Andrew Lanza — A bill to reform tolls on the East River bridges failed to receive a vote in the Assembly last week, but gained crucial support from Senator Lanza, a Republican, who introduced similar legislation to implement the plan.
New York City Councilmember Antonio Reynoso — Councilmember Reynoso said the NYC Department of Transportation should move ahead with plans for a pedestrian plaza at the Myrtle-Wyckoff transit hub regardless of approval from the advisory community board.
MTA riders — The NYS Senate confirmed Tri-State Transportation Executive Director Veronica Vanterpool and Community Service Society President and CEO David Jones to serve on the MTA Board of Directors more than year after being nominated by NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio.
MTA — The Fulton Center in downtown Manhattan became the first subway hub to be awarded LEED certification for energy-efficient and environmentally-responsible design.
New Haven bicyclists — Just over a year after Connecticut effectively legalized modern bike facility designs, New Haven installed its first contra-flow bike lane.
#NHV first! @MayorHarp @benberkowitz @NewHavenEng @NewHavenDOT @NewHavenED @elmcitycycling @bikewalkct @Tri_State pic.twitter.com/Ycz0DGX2g0
— Doug Hausladen (@doughausladen) June 20, 2016
LOSERS
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie — Instead of raising the state’s gas tax–the nation’s second-lowest–to fill yet another looming NJ Transit budget gap, Governor Christie plans to redirect $82.1 million from the Clean Energy Fund next year.
New York State taxpayers — New York lawmakers failed to pass legislation to ensure NYSDOT publicizes its list of approved projects before budget season.
NYPD 19th Precinct — The Upper East Side precinct has issued eight criminal summonses for sidewalk biking to every one moving violation.
Jersey City drivers — More than 100 drivers ignored the stop sign at the Jersey Avenue-York Street intersection during a 90-minute period caught on tape by Jersey City resident Sean Popke.
9th Avenue bicyclists — Drivers in Hell’s Kitchen have been using 9th Avenue’s protected bike lane as an express car lane.
Why is issuing criminal summonses for sidewalk bicycling included among the “losers”? How else will cyclists learn to stay off the sidewalks? A a cyclist myself(before suffering a stroke), I am put off by the attitude among bicycle activists that bicyclists are always in the right. I cringe when I see certain stunts that some of my fellow cyclists pull.