The Mamdani administration announced a suite of street‑safety and transit upgrades in the Bronx, including the revival of the long‑delayed bus priority project on Fordham Road and the completion of a protected bike lane on Ashland Place.
Bus priority returns to Fordham Road
The stalled Fordham Road bus project, once labeled Mayor Adams’s “greatest failure for suffering bus riders,” will now proceed as a pair of offset bus lanes rather than the car‑free busway activists originally sought. City Hall emphasized that the Department of Transportation’s analysis indicates offset lanes will deliver the greatest speed and reliability gains for bus riders.
Ashland Place bike lane finally finished
Mamdani also pledged to finish the protected bike lane on Ashland Place, a crucial link connecting Sunset Park to the Manhattan Bridge and extending toward Queens. A single block of this corridor, previously left unfinished at the request of donors to the former administration and adviser Ingrid Lewis‑Martin, recorded 23 crashes and nine injuries—including four cyclists and three pedestrians—according to city statistics.
City Hall stated the project will convert the southernmost block, known locally as “Crashland,” from a two‑way street to a one‑way street with a two‑way protected bike lane, completing a continuous protected route from Sunset Park to DUMBO with connections to Greenpoint and Queens.
Additional bike‑lane expansions in Brooklyn
Further announcements include:
- Starting this spring, a long‑delayed bike‑lane network will be built through Midwood, Flatbush, and East Flatbush (Community Boards 14 and 17). Protected lanes will run on Cortelyou and Dorchester Roads in Ditmas Park from Coney Island Avenue to Flatbush Avenue, with standard lanes added on fourteen other streets.
- The DOT will install protected bike lanes on Brooklyn and Kingston Avenues from East Novel York Avenue to Wingate Park, creating a new protected bike‑lane loop.
- Conventional bike lanes will be added along Rutland Road and Fenimore Street between Flatbush and Brooklyn Avenues.
The Mamdani administration has not yet addressed the three Bedford Avenue bike‑lane blocks that were removed under the previous mayor at the request of local religious leaders.
All announced projects are tracked on the city’s regularly updated Mamdani tracker, accessible via the agency’s homepage.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are offset bus lanes and how do they differ from the previously planned car‑free busway?
Offset bus lanes run alongside regular traffic lanes, allowing buses to travel in dedicated lanes that are offset from the curb, whereas the earlier proposal called for a car‑free busway that would have removed general traffic entirely from the corridor.
How many crashes occurred on the Ashland Place block before its restoration?
According to city statistics, the block experienced 23 crashes, resulting in nine injuries—including four cyclists and three pedestrians.
What additional bike‑lane projects are being announced for Brooklyn?
The administration announced protected bike lanes on Cortelyou and Dorchester Roads in Ditmas Park, protected lanes on Brooklyn and Kingston Avenues with a loop at Wingate Park, and conventional lanes on Rutland Road and Fenimore Street, as well as a broader network through Midwood, Flatbush, and East Flatbush.
How might these changes affect daily commutes for residents across the Bronx and Brooklyn?
