And who's going to keep these trucks and tour busses and drunk tourists out of these bike lanes? Sounds like a big waste of time and paint.

I maintain that pedestrians and cyclists have been squeezed into the margins of public space by motor vehicles and that we are really on the same team.

But because bikes and peds aren't wrapped up in three tons of steel, we tend to get in fights with each other more than the guys who are actually doing all of the hogging of public space.

All of that has been demonstrated repeatedly in studies and in practice. Somewhere on this blog I know that you can find a Bruce Shaller study showing how very few people shopping on Prince Street arrived by car.

Unless you are Mayor Bloomberg, bike advocates don't really need to justify to you how much more efficient and socially beneficial a bikeable, walkable less traffic-filled city is. It's not worth the energy. Rather, we just need political will to make these changes over irrational objections. We can either choose to make the changes now or we can wait until high gas prices, climate change or a failing, congested, degraded city force us to make the changes. I'd rather start now. We're already decades behind other big cities.

I guess what I'm saying is, first, I don't believe your story. Second, if this same type of thing keeps happening in the same spots in the same way then that might indicate a problem with street design more than anything else. Perhaps we need a reverse flow bike lane on Henry Street. Finally, I ask you: In the same time period that all of these awful cyclists picked on you, how many times were you honked at aggressively, intimidated in crosswalks, spewed upon by diesel exhaust, jolted by car alarms, jostled by pedestrians on overly crowded sidewalks, or treated rudely on the subway? Are you counting those stats too? Or just watching for naughty bikers?

You want the Prince Street bike lanes? Demonstrate that removing parking and increasing the "throughput" of Prince will increase business, and yet be safer for pedestrians, cyclists, and even drivers. Demonstrate that deliveries will occur faster (I'm assuming that there'd be 2 traffic lanes + the bike lane, or 1.5 traffic lanes). Taxis (yes, ugh, taxis) will be able to pick up and drop off people more easily.

The perception of the bike lanes on Prince is that it's a net takeaway for the community, show that it isn't and that it would be a net benefit.

The business community is slowly coming to the realization that traffic is actually bad for business, use this to get business on your side.

don't be ridiculous.

If I walk against the light, in front of a bike, riding the right way down the street, then sure, clip me, turn around and curse me out; but if I'm in the crosswalk, and you're running the light, the WRONG way, and you hit me, don't expect me to get up and be all thankful that at least it wasn't a car.

There are more pedestrians than cyclists and drivers combined, you can either get us on the side of cyclists, or not.

The Prince/Bleecker bike lanes would not calm traffic, and might even speed it up, because they would replace on-street parking. They would also not make the streets significantly safer or easier for cyclists.

160 parking spaces is minimal, but the drivers would probably park illegally in the bike lanes anyway, especially if they have permits.

And for all this you and the Alliance are willing to let the DOT divide and conquer you? What's the benefit? Is it worth fighting over?

It's a big crowded city. We bump up against each other. I'd rather bump into street users that won't kill me. Give me a bike clipping any day of the week.

P.S.

If this has happened three times and you got yelled at each time, maybe it's something you are doing? Time to look inside?

None of the three were messenger/delivery guys.

All three cyclists took the time to stop and scream at me for crossing the street (in the crosswalk, with the light) and then took off.

Sure, autos and trucks do the same thing, can cause more damage, but they're the incumbents, they have the power and the support. When I got clipped by a taxi a witness and I were able to get the TLC number.

Cyclists aren't going to win fans or support by hitting or clipping pedestrians and treating them with disdain and contempt.

Of course, I seem to be pushing the irrelevant comment meter into the red now.

Therefore, we should not do anything that might slow cars down.