Anti-car Democrats are a Road Hazard

[jaf0519]

44 minutes ago, GojiMet86 said:

 

The streets in Astoria don't really suffer from any of the things you outline, though. There's that one protected bike lane and that's it.

They can only go so far in explaining why traffic is worse. Many drivers don't even like to adhere to bus lanes. They just simply drive on them. I see it many times on 34th Street. I took the M60 in the rush hour recently. Not once did it run on the bus lane because of parked cars. The enforcement isn't even there.

The more I hear about bus and bike lanes, the more I get the impression that these are not the root causes, but rather secondary factors. And they only apply in some cases, not all.

At the end of the day, more cars on the road simply means more cars on the road, and therefore more traffic.

There has been an increase in car accidents at the intersection down my street. It's an intersection with a stop line but no stop sign, but I recently learned that there will be a traffic light installed soon. There are car accidents there every other week. I've witnessed one already. And two years ago another delivery guy was killed there.

No bike lanes, no bus lanes, no removal of parking space there. That intersection is simply busier than it was 10 years ago. So are the nearby intersections. The only explanation there is that there's more traffic. There have been too many drivers speeding up. And the drivers are getting worse.
 

This is the crap we deal with in Astoria every day. You think better frequencies are going to get these guys to hop on a bus? Are these guys really the type that want to follow any speed limit?

A bit of a side note, but there's the 114th Precinct. Their cars are constantly parked on the sidewalks. It was pretty dangerous in the recent snowfalls. You either have to be skinny to go behind the cars and between the wall, or you have to brave it on the street. It's a problem that has existed forever. But I guess it's okay if they have placards.

Everyone can agree that the subway and bus services have been substandard. I want as much investment into the bus network as everyone here. But the solution of building new subway lines is a long term solution that takes money, decades, and political will.

I don't know if you've noticed or not, but the MTA is not going to change overnight.

The lack of bus lane enforcement is definitely a massive failure. Same with the placard abuse. I have always been a firm believer of if there is a law in place, it should be enforced. Otherwise, might as well not have the law. 

And of course intersections are busier now compared to 10 years ago. It’s Astoria. The amount of people moving to that whole area of Western Queens in the last decade has been ridiculous. 

And really, “You think better frequencies are going to get these guys to hop on a bus?” Name a bus route they can take that’ll do donuts in the middle of a street. What’s next, asking how to get the drag racers to take the bus instead? That’s an annoying person problem, not a public transit one. 

Edited June 12, 2021 by jaf0519

[GojiMet86]

6 minutes ago, jaf0519 said:

The lack of bus lane enforcement is definitely a massive failure. Same with the placard abuse. I have always been a firm believer of if there is a law in place, it should be enforced. Otherwise, might as well not have the law. 

And of course intersections are busier now compared to 10 years ago. It’s Astoria. The amount of people moving to that whole area of Western Queens in the last decade has been ridiculous. 

And really, “You think better frequencies are going to get these guys to hop on a bus?” Name a bus route they can take that’ll do donuts in the middle of a street. What’s next, asking how to get the drag racers to take the bus instead? That’s an annoying person problem, not a public transit one. 

 

It's a pubic problem. It's an annoying person problem until one day they kill someone or hit a bus.

[jaf0519]

2 hours ago, BM5 via Woodhaven said:

Well, when you reply with "Pray for a miracle that a Republican is elected", that to me says that you don't actually understand the full picture. The Republicans are generally going be more pro-car, and be against most road spaces that take away from cars. While that wouldn't marginally change traffic conditions, it wouldn't change the transit situation either, as buses will still be subjected to the same conditions as they are now. If you think they're going to improve transit the way you feel is necessary, think again. They'll just cave to the same numbers arguments that the MTA will make as to why we can't do anything. The frequencies wouldn't be improved, connectivity wouldn't be improved, etc. So be careful what you wish for. 

BTW, this happens on the national level too, Dems do an abysmal job at trying people to vote for them, and fall back to culture war issues or identity politics, which are cringe in multiple instances. Then voters hear Republicans talk about how ineffective they are, and that they don't fight or serve working people (again, in the cultural lens). Not only do those people agree with Republicans, but because they agree with them, they also start believing they have their best interests economically. Dems don't fight for working people, but Republicans would work against them. They agree on a lot more than what people would like to think, but the propaganda has people drinking the kool aid and defending either "team", as if this was a sport.  At this point, trying to infiltrate either party would not work, it's a lost cause. What' @XcelsiorBoii4888 said earlier about being two evil wings on the same bird is right. Now shoot the damn bird down already.

I’d have to agree with @BrooklynBus on this one. Even a Republican with no transit improvement plan would be better than all these Democrats shoving bike lanes and bus lanes down everyone’s throats. The Democrats have a tendency to think that more money will solve all problems. Transit issues, pay for more bus and bike lanes and punish car owners for not crowding onto the bus. Same with education. Look how huge the NYC DOE budget is and try to tell me that the $34 billion for 2020-21 is being spent well. For $34 billion education should be amazing for everyone, and not as poor as it is. 

Now obviously Republicans aren’t close to perfect, but how can one not consider voting for them as opposed to another Democrat who will raise taxes for programs and plans that fail upon almost all they aimed to do. You might as well throw the money away. 

[R10 2952]

Why vote for a Democrat or a Republican when you can just vote third-party? The Republicans are anti-transit, the Democrats are anti-car.  What we really need is another option, a reasonable middle ground.

As an everyday citizen, I don't support building more highways, I think we have enough (and in some case we have ones that are outright unnecessary- Sheridan Expressway and Cross Island Parkway come to mind).  At the same time, I think proposals for closing down major arteries like the BQE or adding that poorly-planned bike lane to the Brooklyn Bridge are non-starters and simply out of touch with reality.

Now I'm not saying we should give a free pass to drivers, some of whom really do act like a bunch of privileged a**holes and disregard everyone else like it's GTA IV or something.  I also have nothing but utter contempt for the street-clogging vultures that are Uber, Lyft, limo, green, yellow cab, and bike rickshaw drivers.  Something really needs to be done to rein them all in, and on a serious scale.

But that doesn't automatically vindicate the agenda of the Transportation Alternatives lobby, either.  Two wrongs do not make one right, and until new subway lines actually materialize a decade or two (or more) from now, a balanced, reasonably-regulated policy will be needed that takes into account all modes of transportation.  I don't see the TransAlt crowd proposing productive ideas like sending the BxM1/2/18 down the West Side Highway, or de-congesting Fifth Avenue by rerouting some of the other BxM lines through the Central Park north-south drives.  I don't see them putting pressure on the LIRR to maintain Atlantic Branch through-service or get the Elmhurst stop restored.  I don't see them fighting to get Cuomo primaried so we can have a governor who actually gives a shit about improving public transit.  All I see them doing is shouting about more bike lanes while turning a blind eye to cyclists who run red lights and hit pedestrians.

The mentality of several of these mayoral candidates is almost the same as when the politicians pushed for el closures after 1940- 'do it my way now, and we'll worry about the long-term solution later'.  Where's SAS Phase 2-4? Where's the extension to the Bronx? The replacement for the lower Myrtle El in Brooklyn? The Archer Line beyond Parsons Boulevard? I bet none of the November candidates would even get those references if asked about them.

[BrooklynBus]

15 hours ago, jaf0519 said:

I’d have to agree with @BrooklynBus on this one. Even a Republican with no transit improvement plan would be better than all these Democrats shoving bike lanes and bus lanes down everyone’s throats. The Democrats have a tendency to think that more money will solve all problems. Transit issues, pay for more bus and bike lanes and punish car owners for not crowding onto the bus. Same with education. Look how huge the NYC DOE budget is and try to tell me that the $34 billion for 2020-21 is being spent well. For $34 billion education should be amazing for everyone, and not as poor as it is. 

Now obviously Republicans aren’t close to perfect, but how can one not consider voting for them as opposed to another Democrat who will raise taxes for programs and plans that fail upon almost all they aimed to do. You might as well throw the money away. 

I agree with you on Education. I remember when I was a Junior High school student over 50 years ago, I could have written a book on all the things I saw that were being done wrong and came up with improvements, many of which would cost little or no money. I bet if you to some of the intelligent students today, they could find many things that could be done better and show where money is being wasted. But no one asks them. Instead they will pay high priced consultants to res your watch and tell you what time it is. 

Same thing with Transit. Government is convinced they know better than anyone else when they know shit. They don’t care what you think, want or need. Just look at the proposed travesty I mentioned earlier about 7th and 8th Avenue in Brooklyn where the community is not even given the opportunity to express their opinion. 

https://www.brooklynpaper.com/seventh-eighth-avenue-conversion/

[checkmatechamp13]

13 hours ago, R10 2952 said:

Why vote for a Democrat or a Republican when you can just vote third-party? The Republicans are anti-transit, the Democrats are anti-car.  What we really need is another option, a reasonable middle ground.

Remember with ranked-choice voting, there is a chance that (especially in the long-term) it could result in a third-party candidate being elected. If enough people rank the third-party candidate as their number-one choice, then it's a wrap...especially since voting third-party isn't "throwing your vote away" as it used to be.

[BrooklynBus]

1 hour ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

Remember with ranked-choice voting, there is a chance that (especially in the long-term) it could result in a third-party candidate being elected. If enough people rank the third-party candidate as their number-one choice, then it's a wrap...especially since voting third-party isn't "throwing your vote away" as it used to be.

I don’t see how ranked-choice voting applies to third party candidates. If you are a registered Democrat, you can only vote for a Democrat’s in the primary. Similarly, with Republicans. You can only vote for a third party candidate in the  general election unless you are a registered Independent. And I don’t even see any third party candidates running in the primary. 

[checkmatechamp13]

1 hour ago, BrooklynBus said:

I don’t see how ranked-choice voting applies to third party candidates. If you are a registered Democrat, you can only vote for a Democrat’s in the primary. Similarly, with Republicans. You can only vote for a third party candidate in the  general election unless you are a registered Independent. And I don’t even see any third party candidates running in the primary. 

That's what I'm referring to: In the general election you actually have a chance of getting the third party candidate to win.

Also, just to be clear, when you say

Quote

All Democrat candidates except Ray McGuire support Transportation Alternatives’ plan to convert 25 percent of street space to nonautomobile uses by 2025

This applies to Eric Adams, Art Chang, Shaun Donovan, Aaron Foldenauer, Kathryn Garcia, Ray McGuire, Dianne Morales, Paperboy Love Prince, Scott Stringer, Joycelyn Taylor, Maya Wiley, Issac Wright, and Andrew Yang, correct? (I ask, because half of these candidates I haven't heard of, so if one of those lesser-known candidates has reasonable views on transportation, I might rank them higher in my ranked-choice voting). 

[B35 via Church]

2 hours ago, checkmatechamp13 said:

That's what I'm referring to: In the general election you actually have a chance of getting the third party candidate to win.

Also, just to be clear, when you say

This applies to Eric Adams, Art Chang, Shaun Donovan, Aaron Foldenauer, Kathryn Garcia, Ray McGuire, Dianne Morales, Paperboy Love Prince, Scott Stringer, Joycelyn Taylor, Maya Wiley, Issac Wright, and Andrew Yang, correct? (I ask, because half of these candidates I haven't heard of, so if one of those lesser-known candidates has reasonable views on transportation, I might rank them higher in my ranked-choice voting). 

Who in the f....

I'm past done... Words can't express how goofy politics have gotten in this country.

[BrooklynBus]

20 minutes ago, B35 via Church said:

Who in the f....

I'm past done... Words can't express how goofy politics have gotten in this country.

Did you read his platform. He is for spreading love. How bad could he be? 

A number of years ago, there was some third party candidate who actually got like 3 percent of the vote without spending a dime. He did better than three other candidates who did spend money. 

[B35 via Church]

1 hour ago, BrooklynBus said:

Did you read his platform. He is for spreading love. How bad could he be? 

A number of years ago, there was some third party candidate who actually got like 3 percent of the vote without spending a dime. He did better than three other candidates who did spend money. 

Lol... I've never known of.... love to pay the bills

I mean, if we have Mr. Burns running this country, I suppose it can't get any worse....

 

[Lawrence St]

I was wondering where this thread went! Thought it got deleted.

Twitter is hilarious right now regarding bike lanes being built. While both sides have good reasons, I do have to side with the drivers. Bikes not sharing the road is becoming a serious problem in the city, and there seems to be no enforcement.

[BrooklynBus]

2 hours ago, Lawrence St said:

I was wondering where this thread went! Thought it got deleted.

Twitter is hilarious right now regarding bike lanes being built. While both sides have good reasons, I do have to side with the drivers. Bikes not sharing the road is becoming a serious problem in the city, and there seems to be no enforcement.

E bikes is now the biggest problem. They don't even slow down for a red light and boast right through? Last week I was in Astoria and the light turned green after a five second delay to let pedestrians get a head start. When it turned green, about three seconds after I hit the accelerator, I had to slam on the break to let an e-bike pass. That means he didn't go through the red a second after it turned red which wouldn't have been so bad, but about 8 to 10 seconds after it turned red, because I think I was second in line to go across the street. A few weeks before, I had to stop on a green signal to let 12 bikes go on a red light. 

[Lawrence St]

3 minutes ago, BrooklynBus said:

E bikes is now the biggest problem. They don't even slow down for a red light and boast right through? Last week I was in Astoria and the light turned green after a five second delay to let pedestrians get a head start. When it turned green, about three seconds after I hit the accelerator, I had to slam on the break to let an e-bike pass. That means he didn't go through the red a second after it turned red which wouldn't have been so bad, but about 8 to 10 seconds after it turned red, because I think I was second in line to go across the street. A few weeks before, I had to stop on a green signal to let 12 bikes go on a red light. 

90% of bikes are a problem right now, e-bike or not. The complete disregard for rules of the road is a serious problem, there's a tiktok guy who lives in NYC and records him self screaming and cursing at old people, tourists, buses, other bikes for no reason, even when the opposing party isn't at fault. That's the mentality in NYC right now.

[Trainmaster5]

On 6/12/2021 at 7:35 PM, B35 via Church said:

Who in the f....

I'm past done... Words can't express how goofy politics have gotten in this country.

I guess PAPERBOY LOVE didn't make the grade after all 😃. I'm shocked !!!

[BrooklynBus]

1 hour ago, Trainmaster5 said:

I guess PAPERBOY LOVE didn't make the grade after all 😃. I'm shocked !!!

He came in third from last. Two did worse than him.

 

[Via Garibaldi 8]

On 6/12/2021 at 1:44 AM, R10 2952 said:

Why vote for a Democrat or a Republican when you can just vote third-party? The Republicans are anti-transit, the Democrats are anti-car.  What we really need is another option, a reasonable middle ground.

As an everyday citizen, I don't support building more highways, I think we have enough (and in some case we have ones that are outright unnecessary- Sheridan Expressway and Cross Island Parkway come to mind).  At the same time, I think proposals for closing down major arteries like the BQE or adding that poorly-planned bike lane to the Brooklyn Bridge are non-starters and simply out of touch with reality.

Now I'm not saying we should give a free pass to drivers, some of whom really do act like a bunch of privileged a**holes and disregard everyone else like it's GTA IV or something.  I also have nothing but utter contempt for the street-clogging vultures that are Uber, Lyft, limo, green, yellow cab, and bike rickshaw drivers.  Something really needs to be done to rein them all in, and on a serious scale.

But that doesn't automatically vindicate the agenda of the Transportation Alternatives lobby, either.  Two wrongs do not make one right, and until new subway lines actually materialize a decade or two (or more) from now, a balanced, reasonably-regulated policy will be needed that takes into account all modes of transportation.  I don't see the TransAlt crowd proposing productive ideas like sending the BxM1/2/18 down the West Side Highway, or de-congesting Fifth Avenue by rerouting some of the other BxM lines through the Central Park north-south drives.  I don't see them putting pressure on the LIRR to maintain Atlantic Branch through-service or get the Elmhurst stop restored.  I don't see them fighting to get Cuomo primaried so we can have a governor who actually gives a shit about improving public transit.  All I see them doing is shouting about more bike lanes while turning a blind eye to cyclists who run red lights and hit pedestrians.

The mentality of several of these mayoral candidates is almost the same as when the politicians pushed for el closures after 1940- 'do it my way now, and we'll worry about the long-term solution later'.  Where's SAS Phase 2-4? Where's the extension to the Bronx? The replacement for the lower Myrtle El in Brooklyn? The Archer Line beyond Parsons Boulevard? I bet none of the November candidates would even get those references if asked about them.

That's quite the statement. All Republicans are not anti-transit. In my dealings with elected officials over the years, I have found Republicans to be more responsive than Democrats.

Transportation Alternatives doesn't care about express buses. If anything, they wouldn't mind if they were eliminated. They think the alternatives for subway starved areas is to beef up the commuter rails, which is simply unrealistic. They claim to be pro-transit, but are anti-express bus, and their focus is on local bus service, particularly in the poorer areas. This seems to be their objective... To create class warfare. I've had a number of heated discussions with some of their members and that is attitude.

Edited July 3, 2021 by Via Garibaldi 8

[Trainmaster5]

I’m not sure if this belongs here or in a new thread but congestion pricing isn’t coming any time soon according to the Daily News. The first steps haven’t been done yet. Carry on 

[Trainmaster5]

Just saw an article in the Daily News that congestion pricing hearings are starting in NYC beginning today.

Mods can move to another forum if it’s more appropriate.

[BreeddekalbL]

On 9/23/2021 at 12:37 PM, Trainmaster5 said:

Just saw an article in the Daily News that congestion pricing hearings are starting in NYC beginning today.

Mods can move to another forum if it’s more appropriate.

Congestion Pricing, Something that big needs to be placed on a referendum

[Joel Powers]

On 6/11/2021 at 9:11 AM, Lawrence St said:

You can also add bikes to this nonsense. I understand that more people are wanting to bike and whatnot, but adding bike lanes to streets that are ALREADY overcrowded and a traffic nightmare is seriously not needed, like why are adding a bike lane to the Brooklyn Bridge out of all places?? Also, most bikes don't even USE the bike lane and disregard all rules of the road, going through red lights, etc etc but when there's an accident, everyone blames it on the person who was driving the car.

I say get ride of bike lanes entirely. Have them bike on the sidewalk, it's not hard and people used to do that back in the early 2000s.

[BrooklynBus]

51 minutes ago, Joel Powers said:

I say get ride of bike lanes entirely. Have them bike on the sidewalk, it's not hard and people used to do that back in the early 2000s.

Biking on the sidewalk should be allowed when no pedestrians are present. It is safer than biking in traffic. 

[Joel Powers]

7 hours ago, BrooklynBus said:

Biking on the sidewalk should be allowed when no pedestrians are present. It is safer than biking in traffic. 

Exactly, but since it makes too much sense, no one in going to entertain that...