A New 'Bike Boulevard' Is Coming To Sunnyside: Mayor

SUNNYSIDE, QUEENS — In celebration of National Bike Month, Mayor Bill de Blasio biked from Gracie mansion to City Hall on Tuesday, where he then announced a handful of “Bike Boulevards” planned for 2021, including one in Sunnyside, Queens.

The new boulevards, which were first introduced by the mayor in his 2020 State of the City address and remain minimally defined, are aimed at protecting cyclists and pedestrians, and connecting existing bike lanes to each other.

The 39th Street Bike Boulevard in Queens will be the first in the borough, and one of five total planned for 2021, including boulevards in South Slope, Brooklyn, Greenwich Village, Manhattan, Mott Haven, Bronx, and Mariners Harbor, Staten Island.

Details about its exact location remain sparse, but 39th Street intersects with several other key bike lanes in the borough, including lanes on 43rd and Skillman Avenues in Sunnyside and 34th Avenue in Astoria. 39th Street also intersects with Queens Boulevard, the site of a long-awaited bike path that’s been consistently pushed off by the Mayor even as recently as April, reported Streetsblog.

The bike boulevard announcement comes amidst the Mayor’s street-safety-themed week, dubbed "Streets Week!,” which so far has included plans to lower speed limits — including on Astoria and Woodhaven boulevards — and add new busways and bus lanes.

The Mayor’s promise that the Bike Boulevards will include “a variety of measures to make it safe for bicyclists” comes nearly two weeks after an SUV driver who was allegedly speeding down 35th Street near Ditmars Boulevard, killed a father-of-two who was on his bike in the bike lane — an instance of reckless driving that prompted bike and pedestrian advocates to call on the Mayor once again to improve safety infrastructure for people on the street.

"Unless Mayor de Blasio permanently redesigns streets for safety, drivers will continue to kill more New Yorkers whether they are crossing the street, riding a bike, or dining outdoors," said Danny Harris, Executive Director of the bike and pedestrian advocacy group Transportation Alternatives.

For the boulevards, Department of Transportation Borough Commissioners will reveal specific proposals to elected officials and community boards in the coming weeks, according to the Mayor, who said he aims to complete the Bike Boulevards in 2021.

Here's where the boulevards are planned:

21st Street (South Slope, Brooklyn)
39th Avenue (Sunnyside, Queens)
Jackson Avenue (Mott Haven, Bronx)
University Place (Greenwich Village)
Netherland Avenue (Mariners Harbor, Staten Island)