Brooklyn Bridge Bike Lane Construction Begins Monday

NEW YORK CITY — Bicyclists' days of dodging gawkers, pedestrians and tourists on the Brooklyn Bridge Promenade are almost over.

Construction on long-awaited roadway bike lanes on the Brooklyn Bridge will begin Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

Crews will close down the left lane of the Manhattan-bound side for the new bicycle-only path, he said.

"And when that lane opens back up, it will be brand new," he said. "It will be for bikes only. It will be a beautiful and radical reimagining of a New York City icon."

The project's expected completion in early fall will be the realization of a long-held goal for transportation advocates in the city.

Bicycling became increasingly popular during the coronavirus pandemic — a span that had the happy side effect of helping push forward open street and roadway safety projects that once seemed like far-off pipe dreams.

City officials plan to install 30 miles of protected bike lanes this year. And De Blasio, during his final State of the City, officially committed to put roadway bike lanes on the Brooklyn and Queensboro bridges.

State Sen. Brian Kavanagh, who represents both sides of the Brooklyn Bridge, welcomed the project.

“Everyone who has tried to take a bike across that bridge, as I have, has to experience the confluence of the two big roles of the Brooklyn Bridge,” he said. “It’s an essential transportation route, which have been since its beginning 138 years ago, and it’s also an icon for tourists who we welcome to this city all year round.”

The bridge's left lane will officially close for construction starting Monday at 9 p.m., de Blasio said.