The New York City Council passed the Bicycle Access Bill* providing a framework for negotiating bicycle access and storage in office building. The bill, while far from guaranteeing access, should improve the current process and give more bike commuters the option of storing the bike in their office, as opposed to out on the street. * officially known as Intro 871
As always, StreetsBlog provides a great summary:
What does this all mean for bike commuting in New York? Well, the change won’t happen overnight. The bill takes effect in 120 days, and then it’s up to individual tenants to petition their building managers for access (we’ll explain how to do this in a future post). Odds are, as Kaehny told me, “it’s going to be a fight the whole way.” The bill sets the stage for thousands of mini-battles between bike-commuting tenants and landlords who will try to claim exemptions from the law. Ultimately, the bill will be judged a success if bike commuters come out on top in the vast majority of those fights. [ full article ]
Transportation Alternatives on the passage of the bill
Today, the New York City Council passed Intro. 871, the Bicycle Access Bill, by a 46-1 margin. When signed by Mayor Bloomberg, the new law will enable tens of thousands of would-be bike commuters to bring their bikes into the workplace. Fear of bicycle theft is the number-one reason seasoned bicyclists do not bike to work.
The Bicycle Access Bill requires commercial buildings to allow bicyclists entry, provided there is space set aside by their respective employers to accommodate them. Bicycling is the fastest-growing mode of transportation in NYC, and Transportation Alternatives is campaigning to double cycling by 2011 using tools like the Bicycle Access Bill. Encouraging bike commuting not only supports a more sustainable New York City, it also improves the health of New Yorkers.
“No other city in the country has a policy like the one City Council passed today,” says Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives. “When we open the doors of New York City’s workplaces to cyclists, tens of thousands of commuters are going to get on two wheels.”
According to the New York Times:
The law passed on Wednesday with a vote of 46 to 1, with Councilman Erik Martin Dilan of Brooklyn voting no.
If you like the progress New York is making in becoming more bike friendly, please consider becoming a member Transportation Alternatives. Not only will you be supporting bike advocacy, but you also get discounts on bike shops around the city.