Jackson Heights Among Target Areas In $58M Cyclist Safety Plan

JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS — Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst and Corona are among the neighborhoods the city will prioritize in a new, $58 million plan to make cycling safer.

As cycling deaths spike, Mayor Bill de Blasio is unveiling a plan to expand protected bike lanes more quickly, revamp dangerous intersections and tweak traffic signals in an effort to make roads less treacherous for bikers, The New York Times reported.

Seventeen cyclists have died on city streets so far this year, including two within four hours on Tuesday. There were 10 cyclist deaths in all of 2018.

"No loss of life on our streets is acceptable," de Blasio told the Times. "Last year was the safest year on record and we have to keep pushing the envelope and increasing our efforts."

The mayor's plan calls for adding 30 miles of protected bike lanes a year, up from the current average pace of 20 miles each year, according to the Times.

It will also establish 10 "bike priority districts" in parts of Brooklyn and Queens with few bike lines and high numbers of cycling fatalities, the report says.

They include Corona, East Elmhurst and Jackson Heights in Queens, and Bay Ridge, Midwood, Sheepshead Bay and Brownsville in Brooklyn, according to the Times.

The city undertook a similar effort two years ago only to see injuries rise in eight of the 10 designated zones, Streetsblog reported.

Patch editor Noah Manskar contributed reporting.