In 2005, a tragic bike fatality stirred neighborhood groups and businesses to request much needed traffic calming on Park Slope’s busy corridor, 5th Avenue.

More than 100 local businesses signed letters of support for a new 5th Avenue bike lane. The NYC Department of Transportation responded with a combination class II bike lane/ class III shared bike route that extends from Dean to 24th street.

Four years later, NYC averages thousands of cyclists daily, hundreds of them utilizing 5th avenue as a safe route for commuting, shopping, and living; but there is room for improvement.

Extending the 5th Avenue bike lane provides an opportunity to connect neighborhoods like Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, parks such as Leif Ericson Park and Fort Hamilton Park, and provide safer streets for Brooklyn’s residents as well as 5th avenue merchants, who often rely on much more foot traffic than vehicle traffic.

Join us in our TA BK committee’s monthly ride that’ll explore 5th avenue and its potential. We’ll break for lunch (bring or buy your own), relaxing near the Shore Parkway greenway, and photographer Lois Bielefeld will snap some snazzy pics with us for TA as we discuss the ride and 5th avenue campaign strategies.