Fresh markings are going down on the revamped approach to the Williamsburg Bridge at Delancey Street. Courtesy of Adopt-a-Bike Lane volunteer leader Marin Tockman, here's what the site looked like as of yesterday afternoon. Seems like a marked, one-block connection to the median at Suffolk Street is imminent.

Another reader informs us that Suffolk, which runs one-way north to south, is set to receive a bike box at the point before it crosses Delancey. So riding to the bridge from the north should feel a lot more convenient, safe, and "normal" than before.

I'm also digging those continuous zebra stripes across Delancey.

We've received a few reports in the past week about construction work on the Manhattan side of the Williamsburg Bridge. DOT's press office says six bike ramps are being installed, and we hear from observers on the ground that construction is largely complete as of this morning: The bridge approach at Delancey and Clinton Street has three new curb cuts, as does the raised median at Suffolk Street. Now cyclists can get on and off the bike path without having to dismount or hop the curb.

The volunteers at Adopt-a-Bike-Lane have been pushing for a safer ride to the Willy-B since last fall. Together with Allen Street's ongoing livable streets makeover, this new, smoother approach is bound to whet appetites for a protected connection to points west.

Cops ticketing bikers on Delancey by the Williamsburg Bridge this morning. They claimed it wasn't us, that they were sent out because of community board complaints about bikers.

"The community board made us do it." If that's the case, then can we also get ramped up enforcement of reckless driving, which communities all over town have been demanding for as long as we can remember?

Update from our source:

Two bikers ahead of me were stopped by cops, I assumed because of running red lights. I hadn't even done so yet, when I was motioned by a cop towards him, where the two cops ticketed all three of us. I thought it was very interesting to note that the cops made a point of telling each of us that it really had nothing to do with us, that they were specifically told to come out and target bikers. I have no idea why they said that, but it seemed like they were trying to act respectfully. One cop even said, "Just get off the bike and walk it through the red." Wouldn't that be jaywalking? "Failed to yield to ped" is what the ticket says. There were no pedestrians around, other than the two cops, which I was nowhere near. I will be pleading Not Guilty.

Update 2: Thanks for the corroborating reports in the comments, folks. According to the community affairs desk at the 7th Precinct, the police have not received complaints from CB 3 about cyclists exiting the bridge. So, the issuing of bogus tickets to cyclists would appear to be the NYPD's own initiative.

Update 3: CB 3 district manager Susan Stetzer confirms that her community board has not complained to NYPD about cyclists.

Earlier today Benjamin Running posted a link to this item from Gothamist, where a cyclist relays this story:

"As I reach the corner of South 4th Street and South 5th Place, just one short block away from one of the Brooklyn entrances to the Williamsburg bridge, I see that the bike lane arrows turn and point to the sidewalk. I thought it odd but I followed it knowing that it was just a short bit away from the entrance. 3/4 ways down the sidewalk I get stopped by 2 cops telling me that I can't ride on the sidewalk.... And then they proceed to give me a ticket!

Is this some kind of entrapment? The bike lane arrows clearly point toward the sidewalk and there is no sign telling you to get off and walk your bike. While they were in the middle of giving me a ticket, a girl on a bike comes up behind me and they stop her and give her a ticket for the very same reason. And she had the same complaint I did; she was just following the bike lane arrows that pointed to the sidewalk."

Gothamist thinks it's possible that cyclists are misinterpreting the markings and may be riding on a sidewalk area not meant to be included as part of the bike route, while Wiley Norvell of TA says "this is a good, necessary set of markings" on "one of the more dangerous parts of the north Brooklyn bike commute." Norvell notes that a cyclist was killed at this location not long ago.

Regardless, it sounds as if the PD is exploiting this improvement to continue harassing cyclists entering and exiting city bridges.

TA's Wiley Norvell sent in these shots of new bike infrastructure on the Brooklyn side of the Williamsburg Bridge.

It includes a Class 2 bike lane and road diet for South 5th Street, a buffered Class 2 and road diet on South 5th Place, and sharrows and better lane markings for cars on South 4th Street. Williamsburg Bridge-bound cyclists coming from Roebling Street or points further east are being routed along the sidewalk bordering Continental Army Plaza. Good stuff!

"The thousands who ride on Delancey every day shouldn't feel like they are taking their lives in their own hands," says Marin Tockman, founder of Adopt-a-Bike-Lane, who was herself the victim of a crash while riding on Delancey. "We want these rides to show bicyclists how much better their commutes would be if this street made space for them."

Over 3,000 cyclists cross the Williamsburg Bridge every day, according to TA, which says the intersection of Essex and Delancey is the third most dangerous for cyclists in the entire city. Between 1995 and 2005, 99 cyclists and 308 pedestrians were injured by motor vehicles on Delancey.

The Adopt-a-Bike-Lane effort was spurred by the death of Rasha Shamoon, who was killed at Delancey and Bowery in August. Today's rides will depart from Delancey and Bowery every five minutes from 6:00 to 7:00. Cyclists will gather for an after-party at The City Reliquary in Williamsburg from 7:00 to 9:00.

Photo: crayfray/Flickr

This just in from T.A.: 

I just received a call from a very angry member informing me that there are three groups of cops at the Manhattan exit of the Williamsburg Bridge who are pulling over and summonsing every cyclist exiting the bridge. If anyone happens to be headed that direction a) be careful and b) try and grab an image. According to the member, they’ve got cyclists waiting in lines to receive their summonses.