After street redesign, 5.5-mile protected bike corridor between Sunset Park and Dumbo is complete
A stretch of street in Downtown Brooklyn so notorious for safety issues that it has earned the nickname “Crashland” could soon shed its moniker following a redesign. Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn on Tuesday announced the completion of work on a continuous protected bike lane on Ashland Place between Lafayette Street and Hanson Place, filling in the final gap in a 5.5-mile protected bike corridor between Sunset Park and Dumbo. While work began in 2022, construction was halted under former Mayor Eric Adams and left unfinished for three years.
“For years, ‘Crashland’ has been a symbol of broken promises and safety put on the back burner. Today, we finish the job,” Mamdani said. “The Ashland Place redesign connects New Yorkers to a protected bike network, shortens crossing distances for pedestrians, and calms traffic for everyone moving through the area.”
“Our job as government first and foremost is to build a city that keeps New Yorkers safe and works for the people who live here. This is what that looks like.”
For years, bike safety advocates have called for a redesign of the corridor, which earned its nickname because its previous design forced cyclists to contend with cars and trucks along the block, bounded by two busy intersections at either end, as reported by amNY.
The stretch saw 29 crashes between August 2023 and June 2026, according to NYC Crash Mapper, injuring six cyclists and three pedestrians. Over the past decade, the corridor has seen 666 reported crashes, resulting in one death and injuries to 53 pedestrians, 66 cyclists, and 122 motorists.
Under Adams, the DOT announced plans to redesign the street and close the gap in the protected bike lane between Sunset Park and Dumbo. However, the 2023 redesign left out the stretch between Lafayette Avenue and Hanson Place, leaving cyclists without a protected lane along that section.
According to Streetsblog, Adams’ former chief adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin intervened on behalf of local real estate development firm Two Trees Management, prompting the administration to exclude the stretch from the project.
Lewis-Martin also faces bribery charges over allegations that she used her influence to scale back the redesign of Greenpoint’s McGuinness Boulevard.
Prosecutors allege that she accepted $2,500 in cash, free catering at Gracie Mansion valued at $10,000, and a brief appearance on the television show “Godfather of Harlem” in exchange for using her influence to alter the McGuinness Boulevard redesign on behalf of the Argentos, a prominent local production company, as 6sqft previously reported.
Since then, the Ashland Place project has sat unfinished, with bags covering new traffic signals intended to improve safety along the corridor. The coverings “stood as a reminder of what was put back on the shelf,” Flynn said during a press conference announcing the project’s completion.
The project also includes a two-way bike lane along the south sidewalk of Lafayette Avenue, connecting the Ashland Place lane to the protected bike lane on Schermerhorn Street, according to amNY.
Other street redesign projects stalled under Adams that have since been revived by the Mamdani administration include the Madison Avenue bus lane redesign, Astoria’s 31st Street bike lane redesign, and the McGuinness Boulevard redesign, which began in May.
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