On Tuesday, Community Board 3 unanimously approved a resolution in support of DOT's plans for improved Manhattan Bridge access, including bike lanes on Chrystie Street.

Though members of the board's transportation committee (along with Streetsbloggers) advocated for protected lanes, these recommendations were not included in the resolution, the full text of which appears after the jump.

WHEREAS, DOT plans to install a complete network of bike routes and pedestrian safety measures on streets around the Manhattan Bridge. The project goal is safer and more comfortable streets for all street users. Design objectives include:

 
1) Creating dedicated cycling space on direct and convenient routes to and from the Manhattan Bridge.

2) Improving safety for all street users, particularly senior pedestrians.

3) Traffic calming for all street users.

4) Maintaining vehicular access and traffic flow by preserving current vehicle capacity; and

WHEREAS, The project would install dedicated bicycle lanes in both directions on Chrystie St between Canal St and E Houston St and on East Broadway between Chatham Sq and Grand St; and

WHEREAS, Between 2001-2006, there were 864 crashes on the 7 blocks of Chrystie St, of which 116 involved pedestrians (4 fatalities) and 26 involved cyclists (1 fatality); and

WHEREAS, The project would install 2 pedestrian refuge islands and 7 left-turn bays on Chrystie St between Canal St and Rivington St. The north-bound roadway between Rivington St and E Houston St would be narrowed to one through lane; and

WHEREAS, The project would remove 52 parking spaces along the east side of Chrystie St between Grand St and Stanton St. These are the parking presently adjacent to the wall of Sara D Roosevelt Park, which primarily serve daytime customers (all 52 of these parking spaces have middle-of-the-night street cleaning signage and 19 have 2-hour metered parking between 9am-7pm); now therefore

BE IT RESOLVED, that Community Board 3-Manhattan supports the Manhattan Bridge Bicycle Access Network, which includes bike lanes and street configuration changes on Chrystie St, Canal St and East Broadway as described above; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that CB3 asks DOT to prepare the public and other agencies for these changes by:

1) Producing a fact sheet in English, Spanish and Chinese to distribute to residents and businesses in the area. The situation with parking spaces should be explained, and businesses will need to understand traffic regulations regarding bike lanes.

2) DOT should work with NYPD so they understand the new regulations and street geometry.