NYC proposes wider bike lanes along 12 blocks of Sixth Avenue

With vehicle traffic down since the start of congestion pricing, New York City is moving forward with plans to widen bike lanes along a roughly 12-block stretch of Sixth Avenue in Manhattan. During a presentation to Manhattan Community Board 5’s transportation committee last week, the city’s Department of Transportation (DOT) unveiled plans to upgrade the protected bike lane along Sixth Avenue from 14th Street to 35th Street. The proposal includes removing one lane of traffic to make space for a 10-foot-wide cycling lane, building on a project from last summer that widened the bike lanes from West 9th Street to West 13th Street.

According to the DOT, bike traffic along the corridor has increased by 21 percent on weekdays and 54 percent on weekends from 2019 to 2024. Sixth Avenue currently has three moving lanes north of 35th Street and south of 13th Street, presenting an ideal opportunity for the agency to “rationalize” the corridor by removing the fourth travel lane.

The corridor has undergone several changes in recent years, including the installation of a protected bike lane between 8th Street and 33rd Street in 2016, followed by another protected bike lane between 35th Street and Central Park in 2020.

Additionally, a protected bike lane was added on Church Street and Sixth Avenue between Barclay Street and Lispenard Street in 2022. In 2024, the protected bike lane was further widened between Lispenard Street and 13th Street.

The increased volume of riders has led to congestion in the bike lane, with a wider variety of bikes, such as e-bikes and mopeds, requiring more frequent passing, while cargo bikes, which are wider, leave less room for passing.

Sixth Avenue has been a Safe Priority Corridor for the DOT for many years, with a rate of 28.1 killed or severely injured per mile, placing it in the top 10 percent of the most dangerous corridors in Manhattan. The installation of the protected bike lane did improve these statistics, but there is still more to be done, according to the DOT.

Under the proposal, Sixth Avenue between 14th and 31st Streets would feature a wider bike lane to allow for safer passing and accommodate larger vehicles. These expanded lanes would also provide more space between passing bikes and pedestrians on the sidewalks, a design already implemented between West 9th and West 13th Streets in 2024.

Between 31st and 35th Streets, the proposal would convert the moving lane on the east curb into a bus lane.

The proposal also includes several intersection improvements, such as offset crossings for better visibility of turning vehicles and split-phase signals at West 29th Street. The split-phase signals would fully separate crossing pedestrians from turning vehicles, allowing turns only during green arrow phases.

Tod Shapiro, first vice chair of Manhattan Community Board 5, said the wider space will create a safer place for less-confident cyclists to ride.

Joel Maxman, a public member of the Community Board, expressed concerns about the proposal, arguing that the wider lanes would allow riders to travel at faster speeds, increasing the danger for pedestrians.

“It’s already 50 percent bigger than it needs to be,” Maxman said. “The traffic increase that you showed was maybe 15 or 20 percent, it’s not enough to double the size to 250 percent of the standard requirement for a one-way bike lane. All you’re doing is allowing e-bikes to go even faster. They are already capable of going 60 miles per hour, it’s way too dangerous and you’re making it worse.”

Other board members said that the one-way should instead be made for two-lane traffic, which already happens along the corridor.

If approved, the redesign would be implemented this spring.

On Wednesday, NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez cut the ribbon on the completed widened protected bike lane on 6th Avenue between Lispenard Street and 13th Street, completing a four-mile protected bike lane that stretches between Greenwich Village and Central Park.

Rodriguez also announced new or improved bike lanes on 1st Avenue between 40th and 49th Streets, on 2nd Avenue between East 59th and 30th Streets and from 14th Street to Houston, on 7th Avenue between 42nd Street and 34th Streets, and on 10th Avenue, from Chelsea to Morningside Heights.

“With these new street designs, on Sixth Avenue and across Manhattan, we are making our streets safer for everyone – whether you’re riding a bike, walking, or in a car,” Rodriguez said in a statement.

“The wider bike lanes that are part of these projects will help support the historic growth in cycling that we have seen across the city.”

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