Temporary Upper East Side Bike Lanes Could Be Made Permanent

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Two temporary bike lanes that have stretched across the Upper East Side since last fall could be made permanent, and the city will present its plans to a neighborhood community board this week.

The temporary lanes were installed in September along East 61st and 62nd streets, between Fifth and York avenues. The Department of Transportation said the new lanes would help accommodate an increase in bike use during the coronavirus pandemic.

The DOT said all along that the lanes could be made permanent. Representatives told Community Board 8 in January that they would wait to study the lanes' impact on crashes and traffic congestion before deciding whether to keep them.

Now, at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, CB8's transportation committee will host a presentation by DOT about "a proposal to install crosstown protected bike lanes on 61st Street and 62nd Street, and create new bike connections to the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge and Manhattan waterfront," according to an online meeting agenda.

NYC DOT will present a proposal to install crosstown protected #BikeNYC lanes on 61st and 62nd Sts in #Manhattan at @CB8M's Transportation Committee Meeting on 3/3 at 6:30PM.

Please register in advance for the meeting: https://t.co/I8k4HKcFgb pic.twitter.com/KycRdlIqQE
— NYC DOT (@NYC_DOT) February 26, 2021

At last month's meeting, some neighbors praised the lanes, which they said had improved bike access to Central Park, the Queensboro Bridge, and medical centers like Memorial Sloan-Kettering.

Others had less favorable opinions, complaining that the 62nd Street lane in particular had worsened already-severe traffic and blocked patient access to the Avantus Upper East Side Dialysis Center.

The committee ultimately voted down a resolution during the Janaury meeting that would have called on the city not to make the lanes permanent.

Register here for Wednesday's Community Board 8 transportation commitee meeting.

Previous coverage:

• Upper East Siders Sharply Divided Over Temporary Bike Lane
• 2 New Bike Lanes Coming To Upper East Side, City Says