It’s been a few weeks since I’ve had my bike. I’ve mostly stuck to paths (and mostly the West Side Highway path), but I’ve done a little riding on the streets. Last night, I rode from my apartment west to the West Side Highway, down to the end of the island and across to the Brooklyn Bridge. I decided I didn’t want to ride that far, so I turned to ride back uptown. I noticed a bike lane on Centre Street and cruised up that through Chinatown until it turned into Lafayette.
Lafayette and E. Houston
As I rode through the streets, I began to notice a few things.
- There are bike lanes, but cars and delivery vans often park in them.
- Walkers have no idea what to do when they see someone on a bike. There’s a lot of false starts as people take a step, see bikes and take a huge step back because they think you’re going to hit them. Even if you’re nowhere close. And not even in their path.
- The bike lanes on Eighth Ave are pretty amazing.
Do you see how the parked cars separate the bikes from the cars? This is so perfect for a scared cyclist (biker?) like me.
Caitlin posted yesterday about being nervous about riding on the roads in Charlotte, and she got some great advice in the comments, including looking for group rides (which I might try) and being confident that you have a right to the road, too.
Do you have any tips to get over a fear of biking in the city? Or any biking etiquette pet peeves?
