There are at least four excellent reasons to write about biking in the city this month.
First, May is National Bike Month, which is an ideal reminder that New York is a great city for cycling. Most of the city is flat, almost all of our trips are short (according to the bike experts at Transportation Alternatives, 95 percent of our commuting, shopping and other trips are less than five miles), and the climate is pretty great for cycling much of the year.
Second, now that congestion pricing has taken its place as merely one of 127 sustainability initiatives within the broader PlaNYC, it's time to think about how cycling can improve the city's congestion situation now - and how it can help create a more sustainable transportation system in the future.
Third, this is the best time of year to ride a bike to work in New York. Daylight lasts long enough to ensure that bike commuters get home before sunset. The weather is ideal for riding, neither too hot nor too cold. And the summer smog season hasn't begun yet.
Lastly, $4 a gallon gasoline. Is there a better hedge against high gasoline prices (and yes, against future subway fare hikes and service cuts?) than riding a bike?
More people are riding bikes to work than ever before. In fact, the city's Department of Transportation estimates that commuter cycling has grown by 77 percent since 2000. A quick rush-hour walk on the Brooklyn Bridge or the Hudson River Park's bike path confirms this to even a casual observer. Still, less than 1 percent of New York's commuters get to work on a bicycle. The city hopes to double this by 2015 and to triple it by 2020.
In its recent "Sustainable Streets" plan, the transportation department outlined its strategy to increase cycling throughout the five boroughs.
In short, the department plans to create more - and better - cycling infrastructure to make biking safer. In the short run, that includes plans to build 200 new lane-miles of bike routes by 2009 and 15 miles of protected bike lanes by 2010 (see, e.g., the Ninth Avenue Bicycle Path). So far, 90 miles have been built, so the city seems to be on track. In the long run, the department expects to complete an 1,800-mile network of bike routes.
Of course, getting to work is only half the problem. Bike commuters need to store their bikes safely once they arrive. So, the department plans to install 37 bike parking shelters and 5,000 new "CityRacks" by 2011. It will also seek legislation to expand indoor bike parking and pass zoning changes to require that builders include bicycle parking in new construction.
Arguably, even parts of the Sustainable Street program aimed at other types of transportation will help make cycling safer and more pleasurable. Creating a network of bus-rapid transit lines, for example, will help reduce congestion - and create more road space for cyclists. Better management of curb space through expanding the use of muni-meters and better parking enforcement will create a better cycling environment. Traffic calming and redesigned streets (for examples, check out Ninth Street and Lafayette Avenue) benefit cyclists as much as pedestrians. Investing in better management of road projects and improving the quality of street surfaces will make cycling a less-jarring experience in many neighborhoods. Implementing a program of weekend car-free streets and reducing car use in Central and Prospect Parks will help generate a more bike-friendly environment for cycling throughout the week.
In other words, from a cyclist's perspective, the Department of Transportation's strategic plan easily outstrips anything that has ever been proposed by a New York City agency before, and should help make New York City a more bike-friendly city.
Even with all of this, though, New York will not be confused with Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Paris or Beijing anytime soon. Amsterdam has its bike lanes, Copenhagen and Helsinki have free bikes everywhere, Paris has its Vélib network of 10,000 bikes for cheap rent at 750 locations around the city, and Beijing is still home to millions of bike commuters, even as car ownership soars.
There are a few ways that New York City could provide a better environment for its future bike commuters.
First, Transportation Alternatives, the city's leading advocates for pedestrians and bicyclists, believes the administration can speed up the program. Even with current rates of progress, the group believes that the city can cut traffic fatalities in half, complete the full bike network, and "traffic-calm" the key streets around schools by 2015.
Second, to really ramp up biking in the city, there needs to be an easy way for bicyclists to use the transit system. Although you can bring a bicycle onto a subway car, any rush hour commuter knows it isn't easy to do so - for cyclists or non-cyclists. You can't take a non-folding bike aboard any bus, and folding bikes are accepted on local and limited buses but not express buses. Wouldn't it be great, though, to ride an express bus into Manhattan, and then use a folding bike to get around Downtown or Midtown? Plus, unlike some other cities, our buses don't have bike racks. As for Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road, their policies seem designed to keep bicycles off trains during the work week: No bikes during commuting hours, a permit is needed and there's a limit of four bikes per train.
Third, a European-style network of free or cheap bikes everywhere is not yet on Mayor Michael Bloomberg's to-do list. But with crime down, safety up, and bike routes everywhere, could that be part of a bike-friendly platform for the next mayor?
Happy Bike Month NYC!
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For months, an Associated Supermarket in Flatbush, Brooklyn, sat empty with gates pulled tight over its windows, out of business like so many supermarkets across the city. But the demise of this particular store did not mean neighborhood residents would no longer have a place to buy fresh food. Instead, the Flatbush Food Co-op, which had occupied a far smaller space down the block, has brought organic goods, healthy prepared foods and produce to the old grocery store.
The expansion into a store three times as large represents a giant step for the co-op, which started in the general manager's basement 32 years ago. But it also represents a new era for food co-ops in the city generally.
Between the Flatbush Food Co-op and the Park Slope Food Co-op, co-ops enjoy record membership levels and sales, veteran managers say. In addition, a number of co-ops are in various stages of formation from the South Bronx to North Brooklyn.
Food cooperatives vary in size, goals and organization, but are generally formed to meet the dietary needs of a given community. Members of co-ops are partial owners and have a say in how the store is run and what is sells. Often, members can trade labor for discounts on the food in the stores.
As demand for healthy and organic food grows while the number of neighborhood grocery stores declines, co-ops are increasingly viewed as a way provide for the community. But co-ops also face a number of hurdles.
The high cost of real estate and low profit margins for food retailers that have forced many supermarkets to close also make it harder for co-ops to start and survive. And the proliferation of health food stores in other parts of the city makes it harder for nearby smaller co-ops to keep their doors open.
A recent report by the Department of City Planning found that communities across the city lack access to good food - something residents of those neighborhoods have been acutely aware of for some time. The report estimated that nearly 3 million New Yorkers live in areas with high rates of diet-related diseases - such as diabetes and obesity - and limited opportunities to purchase fresh, nutritious food. This shortage has helped spur the resurgence in food cooperatives across the city.
"I've never seen anything like what has happened in the last three years," says Joe Holtz, the general manager of the Park Slope Food Coop.
Although there were at least a dozen co-ops in the 1970s, most died during the '80s and '90s. But in the last couple of years, at least five have been formed or are being planned, many in underserved and low-income areas.
The South Bronx Food Cooperative was initiated by Zena Nelson as "a green shopping alternative." Dedicated to "making a difference in the community by working together to provide healthy and affordable food available to all who want it," it opened last year and has about 30 members. The co-op is currently housed in a community center, but is looking into a location of its own.
Eventually, the co-op might play a role in a larger vision. The planned Via Verde project, a nearby mixed-use and mixed-income development, will include a food co-op, and the developers are considering the South Bronx Food Cooperative. Scheduled to open in 2011, the project is meant to represent a new approach to development that takes into account health, the environment, and affordability.
"The planned food co-op will fulfill the aims of affordability and sustainability in a direct and real way," says Neill Coleman, a spokesperson for the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development.
Two Fort Greene residents, DK Holland and Kathryn Zarczynski, are organizing a co-op for their neighborhood. Both are members of the Park Slope Food Co-op and think a co-op would be a good addition to the Fort Greene area, which lacks a supermarket. They have had about 50 potential members show up at each of their meetings, but are still doing outreach to understand what the community would want from a co-op.
The East New York Food Co-op opened in 2006 and has about 50 members. It was formed in order to "actively improve access to healthier, high quality, and affordable foods." But it has had some troubles getting off the ground and meeting expenses. "We're still a work in progress," says Samila Jones-Daley, the founding organizer.
Although the co-op has been open for over a year, it just recently began accepting Food Stamps. The co-op's application to accept the stamps was delayed because of confusion about its status as a non-profit, which fouled up its Food Stamps application. (For state tax purposes, co-ops are considered a non-profit, but on the federal level, they are not.) In a district where nearly half the population receives some form of government income support, accepting Food Stamps is important.
Other co-ops have not been able to stay above water. In Bed-Stuy, the Kalabash Food Coop, which was housed at the 123 Community Center, recently closed for restructuring. And although the Harlem Natural Food Co-op has about 80 members lined up, it has yet to find enough grants to open its doors.
Finding money represents a challenge for many of the new co-ops. Even the Flatbush Food Co-op received some assistance with its move. The Flatbush Development Corp. used part its $20,000 Community Block Grant from the federal government to assist the co-op with the expansion.
Money continues to be an issue for the co-op. Many new and old members are excited about the extra shopping space and the wider variety of items in the co-op's new store. "I'm overwhelmed and thrilled. It's really marvelous," says Hilda Weinberg, who is 88 years old and has been a member of the food co-op since 1985. "I've seen members come and go. And now I see some coming back."
But a number of shoppers and browsers noted that the prices are too high -- far exceeding those at grocery stores -- for them to shop there for all of their needs. And many residents miss the old Associated Supermarket. John Michael Rossi, who used to live above the co-op's old store and has since moved to a different neighborhood, said he never joined the co-op because he couldn't afford to shop there regularly. "It was cheaper to shop at the Associated," the he said, adding that if the Associated had closed "when I lived here, the price of our groceries would have doubled."
The extra space will allow the co-op to buy larger orders of many items, which will lower the costs. Barry Smith, general manager of the co-op, also noted that if enough members say they are unhappy about the price of an individual item, the co-op's management team will see what they can do to lower the cost. However, he said, the board and managers do have to make sure the store can survive financially.
As the city confronts the health effects of the "grocery gap," many see food cooperatives as way to improve access to fresh food and think government should do more to encourage the businesses.
"Like supermarkets, Green Carts, farmers' markets and bodegas, food co-ops can be a great way to get affordable, nutritious food into neighborhoods where fresh produce can be hard to find," says Ben Thomases, the city's Food Policy Coordinator.
Holtz thinks the city could help co-ops succeed in underserved neighborhoods. "If the city had a low interest loan program, that would help clear the biggest hurdle," he says.
Indeed, the supermarket report suggests providing financing for private supermarkets and grocery stores in high-need communities as one of its solutions.
"Any financial incentives the supermarket commission recommends to encourage supermarkets to locate in underserved communities should be made to food co-ops as well," Thomases said in an e-mail.
To the adherents, co-ops offer many advantages -- and face challenges -- the more conventional supermarkets do not. The East Village's Fourth Street Food Co-op was started in 1995, replacing another that started in '73. As its neighborhood has thrived, the co-op has fought to survive in the face of intense competition from two nearby Whole Foods, a Trader Joe's and health food stores.
While those larger stores sell organic goods, the co-op's members say that Fourth Street Food does far more.
"Our ethics committee goes through products we currently and potentially will carry in order to ensure the company is a small business with sustainable practices and pays workers a fair wage," says Cassandra Flechsig, a membership coordinator. "None of our products are tested on animals and we purchase organic, local, and fair trade, whenever possible."
She also notes, as do other co-op members, that the issue is about more than shopping - it is also about forming community. "It's easy to get lost in a city as big as New York City," Flechsig said. "The co-op provides a nurturing environment that welcomes new members and makes them feel they belong to something bigger than themselves."
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As Mayor Michael Bloomberg seems to never tire of telling us, New York's balmy budget days have ended. Foreign tourists still spend their Euros here, the number of jobs in the city continues to grow and Manhattan real estate remains hot. Still, Bloomberg continues to forecast Wall Street's troubles will lead to falling city revenues over the next few years.
"Everyone in this city should pray that Wall Street does well," said Bloomberg.
City officials, though, are not simply waiting for divine intervention. Bloomberg's executive budget calls for cuts in city spending on an array of services including schools, youth programs and cultural affairs. For its part, the City Council, which must approve the budget, announced in May that it would not seek to launch any new initiatives for fiscal year 2009. Instead, several key members said in a prepared statement, the council would try to do what it can to maintain existing services.
Even in good times, budgets present tough choices, particularly in a diverse and complicated city whose citizens have so many competing needs and demands. But as funds get tight, the choices become even more difficult. Any New Yorker who wants to preserve spending -- in education, for example -- or find a modest sum for a new program faces enormous challenges.
The Budget Maze, Gotham Gazette's latest game, guides you through this complicated and sometimes downright arcane process. If you're seeking to lobby the powers that be, the game offers a useful guide. If you're a student or an armchair activist, the three mazes should help you better understand the tortuous process that shapes city taxing and spending.
In 2003, Gotham Gazette released its first Budget Game that lets players confront the realities of a balanced budget: If you increase spending in one place, you have to cut it somewhere else. Although the numbers no longer apply, the game still offers a great introduction to the tradeoffs the mayor and the City Council must make. This new game focuses more how policy is made and how citizens can affect it.
In the new Gotham Gazette game, you are a knight, setting out to rescue funding for yourself or your community. The decisions you make along the way will determine whether you fail or succeed, how many points you acquire and whether you are a budget apprentice, a journeyman or -- at the apex-- a master of the budget.
New York City is legally bound to have a balanced budget in place by July 1. Every year, sometime in early January, the mayor releases a preliminary budget that lays out the administration's expectations for the coming fiscal year. In Albany, the state has until April to approve a budget -- this gives the city a clear picture of what to expect from upstate in the coming year.
In April or May, after an initial round of negotiations and hearings and following that state budget announcement, the mayor issues the executive budget. The City Council holds hearings on the plan, and council and the administration debate it -- sometimes collegially, sometimes acrimoniously. By June 30, the new budget must be in place.
The game seeks to replicate that. Here's how it works.
We've given you 180 days, from January to the end of June, to find your way through the maze.
As you use arrows to guide yourself through our labyrinth, you will come to a series of chambers, each confronting you with a challenge. How do you get information? What officials should you seek out? How can you wield influence? How can citizens get involved in shaping the city budget? Our game will test your knowledge and (we hope) teach you a bit about how the city budget works.
Days pass as you make your choices, and you must use your time wisely. Lobbying the wrong person takes precious time and moves you no closer to your goal. Lobbying the right official takes time too -- but it does get you nearer to victory.
Influencing policy is always easier when you have a little clout, so as you build influence, you'll also gather points.
When you get to the end of the maze, your score will show you just how much time you had left in the budget process -- the more time you have left the more secure your funding is -- and how much clout you gathered.
If you can't get through the maze in those six months, you lose. Hint: Getting yourself shipped off to the clink will cost you a lot of time, so try to stay this side of the law.
Good luck! And please send us your comments and suggestions.
If you're the sort of gamer who wants to have things a little easier, here's a bit of a cheat sheet:
As you make your way through the dungeon, check the maze overview to see where you are. The overview is always arranged so that north is up, but the direction you face in the maze changes every time you turn a corner. Use the arrows to guide you through the maze.
The progress meter will let you know how many questions you have to go before you're done with the game.
Your final score is the number of days you have left multiplied by the number of points you accumulated. The higher the score the more adept you are at navigating New York City's corridors of power.
The Garbage Game was developed, written and designed by Gotham Gazette: Courtney Gross, Amanda B Hickman, Gail Robinson, Ya-Hsuan Huang
Art by Alex Eben Meyer
Programming by Forum One Communications
Funding provided by the John S. and James L. Knight FoundationÂ