Bike helmet decorating (photo by Keka Marzagão)

Throughout the day, passers-by stopped in to chat, listen to various live music acts, decorate their bikes and helmets, pick up helpful NYC biking guidelines provided by Transportation Alternatives, decorate the sidewalks with chalk, get food and drink from Vox Pop Café, and most importantly, fill out our pedestrian survey requesting their opinions about the safety (or lack thereof) of Cortelyou and Stratford Roads. Everyone from toddlers to the elderly stopped by and took part in our party, which lasted from 10AM to about 6PM.

Along with the approximately 60 surveys that were filled out in person on Sunday, at least 40 more have been filled out online. Hopefully these can serve as further testament to the Department of Transportation that permanent action at this intersection is necessary, be it a four-way stop sign or a traffic light or some other design from their toolbox. As Cortelyou Road accrues more businesses and development, the number of pedestrians, cars and bicycles will only increase, which will make it that much more of a concern. I think that our Block Party was a great demonstration of a fun and creative way to take on issues on a community level that affect the whole city. Now if only we can have a block party for Queens Boulevard!

(UPDATE: We now have 140 surveys! Thanks to everyone who participated!)

I Love Brookln from our 2008 Newkirk Block Party (photo by Anne Pope)

Can’t make it to the party? Fill out our survey online and make your voice heard! Survey results will be shared with Community Board 14 and the NYC Department of Transportation, with the goal of bringing traffic calming infrastructure to Cortelyou Road.

Funding for this event provided by Citizens Committee for New York City’s Love Your (NYC) Block campaign

Flatbush Avenue (photo by wallyg)

This coming Monday night, June 28th, presents a great opportunity for local Livable Streets advocates to have some input on what the future design of Flatbush Avenue will look like!

See the invitation below (received from Assemblymember Rhoda Jacobs’ office) for a Public Input Session to discuss the Department of Transportation’s Flatbush Avenue Study, part of DOT’s Congested Corridors Project. The study area encompasses Flatbush Avenue from Empire to Nostrand Avenues, including the Flatbush/Nostrand Junction near Brooklyn College. (Apparently this study was initiated some time ago, since it refers to the Target store at the Junction as being “under development”.)

At the moment this major thoroughfare that cuts through so many of Brooklyn’s neighborhood’s is dangerous territory for pedestrians and bikes (a cyclist was killed at the intersection of Flatbush and Beverley only two months ago), and crossings are hazardous enough to effectively cut neighborhoods off from each other. Although street design appears to be a permanent and unchangeable part of the urban infrastructure, this is not actually the case, and the fact that DOT is studying this part of Brooklyn shows that they recognize the need for change.

Let’s dare to imagine and advocate for a Flatbush Avenue design that is welcoming to people instead of acting solely as a conduit for automobiles!

WHAT: Flatbush Avenue Congested Corridors Public Input Session
WHEN: Monday, June 28th from 7-9 pm (registration begins at 6:30)
WHERE: Erasmus Hall High School, Bedford Avenue between Church and Snyder Avenues

Safety in Numbers
Bicycle commuting pack
Meet in front of the Flatbush Food Coop
1414 Cortelyou Road
Wednesday, June 10th, 7:30 am

If you would like to ride to work, you’re comfortable riding on streets, and you are a little scared, this is your opportunity to try commuting by bike.

Join me on my normal workday commute. We will leave from Cortelyou Road, ride through Prospect Park and go over the Brooklyn Bridge. The route is almost entirely on bike paths, the pace will be slow-ish, and we will be conservative with regard to traffic regulations.

Please be prompt, we will leave at 7:30.

This ride is not sponsored by any group or organization. Rain cancels.

If you have questions, please leave a message for Deb at 347-249-9667

Streetfilms are short videos that show living examples of streets and public spaces designed for people, where walking, biking, public transit, and fostering community are the priorities. Locations range from Copenhagen, Paris, Curitiba and Bogota to our own New York City. Discussion and party to follow, bring your friends!

Hosted by Vox Pop, cafe/bookstore/community space on Cortelyou Road in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Admission is free, food and drink will be available for purchase.

WHAT
An Evening of Streetfilms

WHEN
Wednesday June 10th at 8pm

WHERE
Vox Pop Cafe and Bookstore
1022 Cortelyou Road (corner of Stratford)
Flatbush, Brooklyn

Okay, now I can speak from first-hand experience: Summer Streets, New York City’s experiment with creating a car-free haven for pedestrians and cyclists, is truly fantastic! A group of us departed from Vox Pop Cafe in Flatbush to ride our bikes through Prospect Park and across the Brooklyn Bridge for this historic event. I must say I never thought I’d have the opportunity to cycle through Manhattan – with no fear of cars – from City Hall to 72nd Street; riding through the streets of Soho, around Union Square, under the Met-Life building and up Park Avenue to 72nd Street… it’s just a beautiful thing.

The weather couldn’t have been better (apparently whoever handles such things is a supporter), and the streets were filled with folks enjoying themselves. The question I kept hearing was “Why is it only until 1pm??”

photo: Flatbush cyclists get ready to ride to Summer Streets! (courtesy of innocent bystander)

For your viewing pleasure!

This is history in the making, folks. As Gil Peñalosa says in the film, Mayor Bloomberg and (especially!) Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan deserve credit for having the guts to try something new. And as Noah Budnick from Transportation Alternatives points out, traffic is not something that “just happens”… we CAN do something about it. Last Saturday was a BIG moment for New York City!

Summer Streets will be back this Saturday the 16th, and we will host a “feeder” ride from Flatbush. The ride leaves from Vox Pop Cafe (1022 Cortelyou Road at Stratford), and they are offering a Dollar Coffee Special to get your day started!

Union Square, car-free!

Words cannot describe the excitement of seeing Park Avenue populated with pedestrians and bikes on a beautiful summer day. It may not look like much here (this was literally five minutes before the event’s end), but I’m sure Streetfilms will have plenty of front-line footage up tomorrow! For now, check out coverage from:

- WCBS
- Gothamist
- NY1

Livable Streets advocates in New York City have dreamed of this for years, and now it’s all happening very fast…

Emulating similar experiments in Paris, London, and Bogotá, Colombia, New York City will close off to traffic a 6.9-mile route from the Brooklyn Bridge to East 72nd Street on three consecutive Saturdays, giving New Yorkers to a chance to explore and enjoy “car-free recreation corridors” — well, for six hours a stretch, at least. (NY Times)

“We anticipate that hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and visitors will take advantage of streets temporarily opened for recreation,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “We hope the Summer Streets experiment will become as much a part of the New York experience as strolling the Coney Island boardwalk, participating in the 5-borough bike tour, or listening to the Philharmonic in the park.” (NYC press release, via Streetsblog)

(Photo: John Marshall Mantel for The New York Times

Yes, that’s David Byrne and Lance Armstrong bringing some celebrity power to the proceedings. The dates are August 9th, 16th and 23rd — can’t wait! For an idea of how fun this will be, check out the Bogota’s Ciclovia on Streetfilms. Next… BROOKLYN Summer Streets!!