McGuinness Boulevard, the major thoroughfare that cuts through Greenpoint, is set to look very different in the coming years.
At a recent community board meeting, representatives from the City’s Department of Transportation presented their plans to redesign the street. After considering several options, which the agency previously shared with the board last summer, the DOT ultimately decided to install protected bike lanes and remove a lane of traffic in either direction.
The new design also adds a middle section to be used as both a pedestrian median and a lane of parking. The project will remove on average two parking spaces per block, “to improve visibility and maintain clearance for turning vehicles,” the presentation said.
Local activists have been pushing for safety improvements to McGuinness Boulevard after the tragic hit-and-run killing of local teacher Matthew Jensen in 2021, unfortunately, one of several similar incidents.
“The current four-lane boulevard has long been a deadly corridor cutting through the Brooklyn nabe,” Streetsblog reports. “Three people died due to traffic violence there over the last decade and a whopping 389 people suffered injuries in 1,690 total reported crashes — nearly one every other day on just a short stretch of one roadway.”
The DOT commenced with smaller safety improvements to the street last year, banning left-hand turns into several side streets and installing painted median-tip extensions. They will finalize the design based on community feedback before work starts later this year.
Throwing money at it.
– the person getting rich
ok so we’re all just expecting cyclist to follow traffic lights on mcguinness blvd? might as well close the whole blvd down.
Blame it on Lincoln, that borough president, and what’s her face.
“might as well close the whole blvd down.”
That’s a great idea! Entitled car owners have had it too good for too long. It’s time to grow up.
DOT isn’t making biking better, just making living in the city worse.
The other commenters must not enjoy walking, biking, safety and clean air – this is a tremendous development for East Greenpoint which has been treated as an afterthought historically.
Huge win for pedestrians in Greenpoint!
What a great project. More like this from the DOT would be great.
This is a joke. All it will do is add traffic jams which in return will cause heavy pollution. Doing all this for bicycles which they don’t follow traffic laws. Maybe the nit wits put there cell phones down while crossing. They need to also fine the ones that don’t follow laws. All this for a few cry babies.
Yes, crossing McGuiness CAN be often dangerous with reckles drivers.. But bikers who don’t obey the rules (that are unenforced anyway) are ALSO a danger to pedestrians. And Isn’t there a bike route on the adjoining side streets already? How will major establishments like Key Food receive their deliveries, with the bays loading located on McGuiness Blvd. How will cars enter the gas stations along the route? McGuinesss has heavy traffic – it is a major oute. One lane in each direction simply cannot handle that . There has to be a better way.
This is fantastic news. Lives will be saved, air will be cleaner, and New Yorkers will have more room to walk and bike. Thank you to our elected officials! Hopefully this is just a start, as all major city arterials should be redesigned to prioritize people over trucks.
Horrendous idea
This will clog up newel and Leonard
Which already receive heavy traffic from ongoing construction closing down one lane of traffic
How about the merge into one lane from lic in greenpoint
It’s going to cause back ups all the way back to LiC and into Buschwick
LOL at all the obese car babies whining.
This is great. Can’t wait for it!
This plan completely ruins what is left of Greenpoint. Bike riders here are reckless, often violent, run red lights and stop signs, run people off the sidewalks, and are foul-mouthed. Not everyone can ride a bike or take dangerous, slow, and overcrowded public transportation. What about the disabled, young, elderly, those transporting cargo, and pet owners who have to get their animals to veterinarians? And how can business deliveries be made or vehicles get on and off the BQE? This entire area will be completely paralyzed. What’s already happening now will be made even worse by an insane amount of traffic being forced onto residential streets. And it’s not the driver’s fault – goods and services have to be transported by vehicles. This plan makes what used to be a quiet family neighborhood unlivable. The DOT is totally ruining life here for everyday New Yorkers. Shame on our city and state leaders who are abandoning long term residents who are the life blood of New York City.
Man. I’m a cyclist, and I gotta say, I find this plan really dumb. I aways thought it made sense to have one big road for cars and trucks to get through from the BQE to the Pulaski Bridge, so that the other side streets were more chill. Seems kinda dumb to try to make every single road mixed-use like this. Plus I hate to side with car drivers, but this
Terrible plan! Does the DOT realize the mistakes they are making. Just look at the protected bike lane on Grand St. It is the most dangerous and scary route for bicycles. I am some one who rides a bicycle and drives a 40ft truck in the neighborhood for the past 15 years. I see both sides and this solution is a failure!
To protect the safety of riders, a better idea would be to ban bikes on McGuinness. Let cyclists use the safer streets that run parallel. This is just another blatant attack on vehicles in the name of safety.
I wonder if they considered what the New York Road Runners would think of narrowing the Marathon Course to one lane.
In any large busy city arterial roadways are meant to facilitate transportation…not to cater to a specific group of individuals.
Roadways like other City institutions should provide the “greatest good to the greatest number”
The misguided notions of the DOT do not accomplish ths
Bike lanes move far more people per hour than so-called arterial roads. The truth is car owners have been coddled for too long and it’s time for the needs of the majority to be considered.
This should be happening on the side streets, where cyclists are meant to ride.
Which street specifically should this happen on for northbound cyclists? There are currently ZERO northbound bike lanes serving the area, and currently cyclists are forced to take Manhattan Ave, which, south of Greenpoint Ave is incredibly dangerous.
None of the parallel side streets are wide enough to support an additional bike lane without removing one side of street parking. Eckford is the natural choice, would you support that?
It is naive to think this will cause less pollution. It will cause more pollution from idling trucks and cars waiting to merge. Can you imagine the mess when the Pulaski is open? Until we decide that Uber and Lyft are not for trips that can be walked in less than 15 minutes, there will not be less cars on the road. Ask those who live along the blvd how they feel. I bet the majority of answers will surprise bike enthusiasts.
I could be wrong but isn’t this the only 2 lane road left in Greenpoint? As an avid commuter cyclist, I’m all for less cars on the road and more bike paths, but this seems like an irresponsible solution especially considering emergency service vehicles could be delayed in traffic jams. How many lives could potentially be lost due to these unnecessary delays. There are still many elderly people in GP to consider. Not to mention the excess traffic this will create on the side streets, which is a recipe for more accidents and pollution; especially during school hours when the school busses need to come down McGuiness in order to access the neighborhood schools.
You have to also think about the delivery delays this could cause for the small neighborhood businesses that we all rely on. Changes like this can drive prices up due to delays as well; your Uber fares will start getting more expensive to pick up and drop off because of traffic patterns. Just saying…there’s a lot to consider here. There are ways to make McGuiness Safe, but this is not it!
For all you cry babys whining about losing a lane of car traffic you guys should look into this concept called induced demand.
McGuinness is a dirty, loud, dangerous and inappropriately placed superhighway that cuts the neighborhood of Greenpoint in half. I’ve always felt sorry for the people who live along or near it. Nobody on one side of Greenpoint wants to cross over to the other side. It has a depressing effect on local walkability, business activity, real estate values, and community health and wellness. It’s time for change. This plan is a breath of fresh air for Greenpoint.
I’m glad this is happening, McGuiness is horrible roadway that splits what is supposed to be a quiet neighborhood. There is no way to cycle to queens safely. All the people complaining, just look at other neighborhoods in the city where this has happened, it has added a ton of value; if you want massive roadways and to practically live in your car, move to Texas.