'Master Plan' For NYC Streets Is Two Years Away

NEW YORK — New York City officials must create a "master plan" to remake the Big Apple's streets in about two years under a measure lawmakers are set to pass this week.

City Council Speaker Corey Johnson's measure will require the Department of Transportation to deliver a five-year plan by December 2021 to shore up the city's infrastructure for cyclists, pedestrians and public transit.

The bill — slated for a Wednesday council vote — aims to protect New Yorkers who do not drive in response to the dangers of climate change and cars, which are responsible for most deaths on city streets.

"We are at a turning point," Johnson, a Democrat, said at a Tuesday rally behind the bill. "As a city, we know things are unsustainable and we need to make big changes. We’re going to show the rest of the country, and hopefully the world, that we can remake cities to be better."

Cycling, public transit and safe-streets advocates have joined Johnson's push for the master plan as the number of cyclists killed on city streets jumped to 26 so far this year from 10 last year. They have also been encouraged by the success of a ban on most private car traffic in favor of public buses on 14th Street.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has long supported the goals of Johnson's proposal but got fully behind it after "resolving some logistical challenges to ensure the City can make the plan a reality," City Hall spokesperson Will Baskin-Gerwitz said.

"In order to break ground on a bike lane in 2022 or even later, the City must begin laying the groundwork years in advance, and the de Blasio administration stands ready to lead the way on the plan’s implementation over the next 26 months," Baskin-Gerwitz said in a statement.

The initial master plan must lay out ambitious upgrades that officials will implement by 2026, with follow-up plans due every five years, the council says.

They include 250 miles of protected bike lanes, with 30 miles coming in the first year and 50 miles in each year thereafter. Others aim to improve bus service by adding 150 miles of dedicated bus lanes enforced by cameras or physically separated from traffic, and the installation of technology giving buses priority at traffic lights at 4,750 intersections.

The plan would also protect walking New Yorkers by creating 1 million square feet of pedestrian space in the first two years, redesigning at least 2,000 intersections and making pedestrian signals accessible at at least 2,500 intersections, according to council officials.

The Department of Transportation will not have to deliver the initial plan until Mayor Bill de Blasio is on his way out of office. And while the legislation gives the department a legally binding mandate, it does not lay out any penalties for failing to meet its benchmarks.

Johnson — who is considering a run to replace de Blasio — said the lag will let the agency build the capacity needed to implement it by hiring staff, building facilities and taking other steps.

"What we are going to do (with) this legislation is totally reshape the Department of Transportation," Johnson said. "... They are going to have to have significant changes on how they operate right now to actually be able to operationalize this."