How to Bike in New York City

Notes from an actual biker: how to get around New York City on a bike. These are tips that are specific to New York but could be generalized for other cities.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• bicycle

1. 

   GET A MAP. The New York Department of Transportation offers a free bike map showing routes in all the boroughs. It's a great resource that's updated yearly. Get the map mailed to you for free by calling 311 from a local phone or 212-NEWYORK (639-9675) from a non- New York City number. The map is also available at bike shops. Thirdly, the map is printable from the DOT website:
   
   http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bicyclists/bikemaps.shtml
   
   The website also features a route finder. Just fill in the From: and To: fields and it maps out a path.

2. 
   West Side Highway Bike Path

   IDENTIFY THE MAIN BIKE ROADS. As with any travel, having a few key reference points is useful.
   
   On the West side of Manhattan: there is a bike path that runs all the way up West side highway. Because it's separated by a concrete divider it's very safe.
   
   On the East side, there is a bike path along the FDR drive from 60th and above. It's disrupted from 38th to 59th but there are reassuring signs every two blocks indicating the way (which is simply, up). Ironically after all that signage the entrance back on the drive isn't that well marked. There is one on 60th right at the Queensboro Bridge that goes through a fire lane/ ramp.

3. 
   Beware of gossip girls

   REMEMBER TRAFFIC PATTERNS
   Going up 1st Avenue is generally better than going up 3rd; 6th Avenue is better than 8th in Midtown Manhattan, but below 32nd it's okay. As you bike you will often have the choice between going up one avenue or another. Keeping a mental note of the better streets makes biking a lot easier.
   
   Also note any dangerous streets. For example Park Avenue is populated by the parents of gossip girls. They are real-life Daisy Buchanans. It's also a favorite route for taxicabs (carrying the same people). All in all that street has a prevalence of speeding cars that show no intention of slowing down. They treat a traffic light like it's a shotgun at the race track. Biker beware!

4. 
   The Brooklyn Bridge offers a great view heading into Manhattan

   KNOW THE ACCESS POINTS FOR BRIDGES
   For every bridge, there is only one entrance. It's often a bit nonintuitive and tucked away somewhere. There are a few ways to know the whereabouts of the access point:
   
   1.) There are closeup gifs of the bridge entrances on the DOT map mentioned above. It's very useful and has clear diagrams.
   
   2.) If you don't have time to look at the map or for some reason don't have it (always carry that map!) don't waste time biking around looking for it. Moreover, the cars coming on or off the bridge are making turns and switching lanes and it's a dangerous area to wander. If at all possible, find a traffic control officer. They are often at work around bridge areas.
   
   3.) Previous experience. The easiest way to know is by experience. Unlike streets which look very much like one another and which you don't enter the same way every time, a bridge is visually distinctive and I find that after that first time, you will simply recognize the path to take.
   
   TIP: Going from Brooklyn to Manhattan, the entrance to the Brooklyn Bridge is on Tillary Street. Not too far away on Jay Street is the entrance to the Manhattan Bridge. Many people favor this bridge because there are fewer pedestrians and tourists.

5. 

   RIDE ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ROAD. Because bike lanes are typically on the left side of the street, cars are accustomed to looking for bikes on that side.

6. 
   They may look tough but you can talk to them!

   COMMUNICATE WITH DRIVERS
   New York is actually quite a communicative city. While there is anonymity due to the 8.6 million population, there is also a feeling that you could say something to someone at any time if you need to. If you give a shout out to a driver they will often let you pass. Just let them know what you're trying to do. In New York, a shout is not unusual and will not be taken as rude.

7. 

   WATCH TIRES, NOT CARS
   The number of bike paths in New York is quickly increasing, but biking in New York is still largely about weaving in and out of cars. Particularly tricky is times when a car is pulling out of a parking spot, or from having pulled over next to a parked car. The driver is often focused on just watching cars and may not see you. If you want to know whether a car is moving, look at the tires. Leave more space than you think necessary between yourself and the vehicle- just in case the driver suddenly steps on the gas.

8. 
   Whoop! Whoop!

   GET A BELL or be prepared to whoop it up at the numerous pedestrians who aren't watching. A rising pitch works well.

9. 
   Pedestrians are dumber than pigeons.

   PEDESTRIANS COME IN THREE KINDS: normal people, pigeons, and deer in headlights.
   
   Normal people have some awareness of their surroundings and will move intelligently in a reasonable direction, out of the way, when appropriate.
   
   "Pigeons" are oblivious and will kind of walk along their way, not looking to the side. However, they're not that bad because they are reasonably predictable and easy to maneuver around.
   
   "Deer in headlights" are the worst. They freeze in the middle of the road (or bike path) lock eyes with you, and sometimes even mirror your direction left and right such that whatever way you go, they seem to follow- in what may be an honest attempt to get out of the way- but is nevertheless completely ineffective. The only thing to do is come to a near or complete stop and let them walk out of the way.
   
   Oh and there's a fourth kind- this is the worst-- "the willfully problematic." These are fussy, nosy, nitpicky types that are particularly prevalent in New York. They see you, but due to some bizarre sense of righteousness they refuse to get out of the way (and this is in a bike lane or street!) or may even slow down a little so as to intersect with your bike. They simply feel like wasting time both of yours' times. It is a part of life that occasionally you have to deal with petty people. Just think, you only have to deal with them for a minute; they have to deal with themselves always.
   
   Pedestrians annoy more frequently than cars. However, it only takes one car to kill you. So, watch out for cars.

10. 
    8th Avenue runs up... but some will go the wrong way

    AND WATCH OUT FOR OTHER BIKERS, especially the high-speed racing bikes in Central Park. They don't want to "lose their line" (an invisible straight path they are trying to follow) and routinely bank that everyone else will get out of their way. And messenger bikers, who get paid by the package. And pedicabs. They love to drift. The number of things to watch for is staggering when listed. However it's also what makes biking in the city so engaging.

11. 
    The way to lock up your bike.

    LOCK UP YOUR BIKE WITH TWO LOCKS. One that locks the front wheel to the frame- usually a U-lock that can also go around the pole or rack. Another that locks the frame and back wheel, usually a chain, of the kryptonite sort. With only a wrench, the wheels of a bike can be unscrewed and removed. If your front wheel is quick release, it's even easier.

12. 
    Lock up before you take that nap in the grass.

    ALWAYS LOCK YOUR BIKE. It's possible for a bike to be stolen even when you are right there. If someone in the vicinity can hop on the bike before you, they can steal it. Then what are you going to do? They are on a bike and you are on foot. Your only hope at that point is to make a lot of noise and someone up the road tackles the bike for you or knocks the thief over.

13. 

    DON'T PARK IN HIGH PEDESTRIAN AREAS such as Times Square. Bored tourists will fiddle and mess with your bike.

14. 

    NOTICE WHITE BIKES that have been strapped to poles with signs and flowers. These are sites where a biker was killed.

15. 

    To end on a positive note, CONNECT TO OTHER BIKERS. Critical Mass happens the last Friday of every month in Union Square. Brooklyn's Critical Mass happens on the first Friday at Grand Army Plaza. Both start at 7 PM.

Resources

• DOT bike map

[joanhaines]

on 8/25/2009 Wow. Obviously, this is from one who truly knows the ins and outs of those nerve-wracking NYC streets.