Tuesday, January 3, 2012
News City Fixing Navy Street's Cyclist-Stoning Bridge
Posted by Benjamin Sutton on Tue, Jan 3, 2012 at 3:46 PM
Last year cyclists riding along Navy Street in Fort Greene between the Whitman and Ingersoll houses were repeatedly struck by projectiles tossed from a footbridge whose fence-less entrance ramps afforded throwers the perfect perch. Now the city is moving to make the popular bike route safe for riders.
Back in December a spokesperson for the NYPD's 88th precinct said there would be increased patrols near the footbridge, but now the Brooklyn Paper reports that the city's Department of Transportation will respond to cyclists' safety concerns by installing additional fencing on the footbridge:
An 18 inch-tall inward-curved mesh barrier will be installed on top of the fence—much like the one on the Manhattan Bridge bike lane—to stop anything from being thrown over the footbridge, a Department of Transportation spokesman said, explaining that the fence, which will be much taller than the one that’s already there, should be in place by the end of the month.
But because the DOT plan doesn't deal directly with the lack of fencing on the footbridge entrance ramps at least one cyclist injured at the site sees the solution as insufficient.
Stephen Arthur, who was struck by a brick thrown from the bridge in August 2011 says the fencing should extend up the footbridge ramps, and be accompanied by signs reiterating the illegality of throwing objects on passing vehicles and cyclists.
We'll have to wait until the weather warms before the new fence's effectiveness can be properly assessed.
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