Bicycles in New York City

If you are a fan of roller coasters, you might want to give New York City on a bicycle a try. Between the automobiles, the potholes, the construction, the pushcarts, the pedestrians, the cab doors, the delivery trucks in the bike lanes, the squeezes you get from buses, the side mirrors, the occasional cobblestone street and the other bicyclists, it never gets old.

And, New York is trying hard to make this a bicycle friendly town. They’ve laid out 70 miles of bike lanes and in Manhattan they’ve created a path that runs from The Battery (that’s all the way downtown) to the northern tip of the island on West Street. Their efforts have earned them a “bicycle friendly community” designation from the League of American Cyclists. And they have many more miles of lanes planned.

The West Street bike path is a good place to cut your teeth if you are a bit nervous about playing Death Race 2008 on the streets. The path is separated from traffic, well marked and there is a beautiful view of the Hudson River. You can also try a run or two around Central Park. The ride is beautiful. But not flat. This is a city of hills, particularly as you head uptown. It is never San Francisco, but if you are a flatlander, you will find your work cut out for you.

The real fun is on the city streets. That’s where the thrill-seeker in you gets a chance to play. And, while it is possible to get hurt, with 100,000 other cyclists on the road, the odds are in your favor if you keep your wits about you … and obey the traffic rules (which everybody should do, but nobody does).

A bicycle also really opens up the city for you. You have speed that almost compares with a cab and mobility that compares with your feet. You can also slow down and take in the sites (with one eye and both ears out for incoming traffic).

Consider Red Hook in Brooklyn. There isn’t an easy subway stop in Red Hook. You have to hike in and hike back out. … Unless you are on a bicycle. Same holds for the edges of Manhattan. The subway system tends to run up the spine of the island except where the Brooklyn and Queens bound trains make their respective escapes.

A lot of Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side, for example, are a bit of a distance from a subway stop. If you plan to really explore those areas and are on a time schedule, a bicycle is the way to go.

Bicycles will also carry you quickly through residential districts that don’t have a whole lot to see.

If you are bicyclist, consider bringing your wheels with you. Bicycle rentals aren’t cheap. You can pay $30-$50 a day.

If you can’t bring your own wheels, it’s still worth the expense. Consider this. If you go to The Top of the Rock or the Empire State Building observation deck ($20 each), the panoramic views may make you say, “Wow.” But a bike ride down Broadway will take your breath away. It’s a New York experience you will never forget.

NOTE: You can pick up a free bicycling maps at the NYC Department of City Planning bookstore at 22 Reade Street, NY, NY, 10007, in bicycle shops, libraries, and schools. This is a good map for cyclists, but it is also a decent map for walkers because unlike the subway map, most of the city streets are marked.