Upper Green Side

Queensboro Meatgrinder

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Classic Scene near Queensboro Bridge on Second Avenue (note red light!)

Every morning I walk past scenes like this near the Queensboro Bridge (QBB) on Second Avenue. Traffic blocks up on Second Avenue north of the two major crosstown exit routes at 60th and 57th Streets all the way to 70th Street and beyond. The problem is that the QBB creates a natural choke point for south bound traffic on Second Avenue as hundreds of cars and trucks enter Manhattan at every change of the light. But instead of trying to discourage drivers from using Second Avenue in that area or deter drivers from taking the QBB, the only attempt to manage this is to place some traffic agents at a few intersections, but it remains a state of perpetual gridlock and lawlessness. It is also one of the most dangerous areas in the city to bike, as shown in the recent health study of cyclist fatality clusters.

In the scene above, cars heading down Second Avenue in the 60s blocked the box (60th and Second was the worst intersection for blocked box in the Borough President’s analysis) for vehicles heading eastward. Instead of patiently waiting for the obstruction to clear, the London Meat Truck (212-255-2153) drove up onto the pedestrian crosswalk, but still couldn’t make it’s way to the next block until people on the sidewalk backed up to allow it space to squeeze through. But then other cars were following the truck, even after the light turned, forcing pedestrians back on the curb, even though they had the signal.

Pedestrians pinned on the Corner As Cars and Trucks Run Red Lights

And so the cycle of frustrated motorists clashing with each other as well as pedestrians and cyclists continue. How much longer must the Queensboro meat grinder churn?

Avella, HEART & LOHV-NYC team up on education

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From UGS Member and League of Humane Voters of New York City Leader, John Phillips
New York City Council Member Tony Avella has introduced a resolution urging the New York City Department of Education to help schools comply with New York State’s humane education law by issuing an informative memo to all public schools in the city. Enacted in 1947, New York’s humane education law requires instruction in the humane care and treatment of animals. Unfortunately, according to representatives from Humane Education Advocates Reaching Teachers (HEART) and the League of Humane Voters of New York City (LOHV-NYC), the law has not been enforced and few educators know of its existence.

Avella says, “I am proud to be the author of this very important resolution. It is imperative that in addition to providing our children with a solid educational foundation in math, reading, history and science, we must also give them the tools to be compassionate and responsible members of our society. Instruction on the humane care and treatment of animals will go a long way in helping our children reach that goal.”

Continue reading Avella, HEART & LOHV-NYC team up on education…

A Chance for City Leadership on the Environment

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Today, in California, Mayor Bloomberg made a first step in creating a much more proactive environmental policy for the city. The highlights of the announcement are:

• The creation of the Office of Long-term Planning and Sustainability.
• The undertaking of a major greenhouse gas inventory for City government and the City overall.
• The appointment of a Sustainability Advisory Board to advise the City on environmentally sound policies and practices.
• The creation of a new partnership with the Earth Institute of Columbia University to provide the City with scientific research and advice on environmental and climate change-related issues.

We applaud this annoucement and we look forward to hearing more tangible steps to make the city more environmentally sustainable. Sustainability is great word. Here’s how the mayor defined it:

“Sustainability is all about ensuring that economic growth and development today is compatible with the ability of our children and grandchildren to meet their needs in the future,” said Mayor Bloomberg.

We agree. We hope this will be the start of some really great new environmental initiatives to address our generation’s twin challenges of extreme climate change from carbon emissions and the economic impact of “peak oil”, the point at which the world can no long produce increasing amounts of oil.
One easy place to find some good off the shelf common sense proposals is the NYC Council Report on Sustainability that was prepared by former City Council Speaker Gifford Miller’s legislative director, Marcel Van Ooyen, now the president of the Council on the Environment of NYC and co-signed by current City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. Specifically we hope that reducing our city’s dependence on cars and trucks is high on the list of priorities.

In this annoucement, we see hope. We see a chance for real leadership to change the way that our society approaches its relationship with the environment. We hope other leaders, stakeholders and interest groups will join this effort. We hope that soon, we will see promises turn into reality.

City Announces Major Biking Initiative

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New City Initiative to increase cycling citywide:

1. Two Hundred Miles Of New Bike Facilities Will Built In The Next Three Years.
2. Releases Detailed Report On Bicycle Injuries And Fatalities.
3. Changes Are Result Of Unprecedented Inter-Agency Collaboration Between Departments Of Transportation, Health, Parks And Police.

Streetsblog has the latest on this breaking story. Also see Transportation Alternatives’ Press Release on the story. We will keep you updated on how this effects our neighborhood.

Upper Green Side strongly supports the completion of the NYC Bike Master Plan, which calls for an East River Greenway and Bike Lanes on First and Second Avenue. We hope that this new plan will create more real bike lanes that are buffered or protected from automobile traffic. We raised the issue of bringing bike lanes to the Upper East Side with the local community board in February and collected over about 800 signatures for a petition to bring bike lanes and greenways to the Upper East Side. The Community Board did not take action on the specific request to install bike lanes at that time, but to their credit, the community board included a statement on improving bike safety in their district needs statement to the city. We remain commited to working with all community stakeholders to design a sensible plan to encourage more cycling in the neighborhood. Through our upcoming transportation survey, we plan to understand the demand for all different modes of transportation in the neighborhood.

What Makes the Upper East Side so Green?

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What Makes the Upper East Side so Green?

Quite a bit actually. In fact most urban areas are more “green” than people give them credit. And it’s not because of all of New York City’s great parks, although they certainly make living in a dense urban area more pleasant. No it’s actually something that most people would intuitively think is decided brown. What makes the Upper East Side “green” in the environmentally friendly sense is its extremely dense population, its close knit mixture of commerical, residential and recreation/entertainment facilities, its walkability & close proximity to mass transportation. Residents of the Upper East Side live in an area which allows people to live a high quality of life while minimizing their impact on the environment around them. We use only a fraction of energy to heat our homes, transport ourselves around and power our lighting and appliances as our suburban counterparts.

If the Upper East Side is already doing so well, what can be done to improve it?

Again, quite a bit.

First, we can improve the rate at which people use environmentally friendly transportation modes such as walking, biking and mass transportation over more polluting modes of transportation like automobiles.

Second, we can improve our own energy efficiency to even higher levels by incorporating green features into our homes, like using compact fluorescent lighting, better heating and cooling systems.

Third, we can influence the world around us through our purchasing patterns. Take food for example. Most of our food is produced on industrial farms that require huge energy inputs which are then transported to us over great distances by airplanes or trucks. By preferentially buying locally grown and/or organic foods, we can influence the farming techniques employed, preserve local farmland from suburban sprawl and reduce the distances between ourselves and where our food is grown.

So what’s in it for me? What’s the trade-off? I mean, what do I personally stand to gain from all this?

A better quality of life, a healthier body and lower expenses.

For instance, by biking or walking more often you will save money on taxi and metrocard expenses while getting some good exercise and a personal sense of accomplishment. By buying locally grown and/or organic food, you get fresher, better tasting food. By installing Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs, you save money on your electric bill. We’ve put together a list of ideas you should consider in getting started.

Ok, that all sounds great, I plan to start doing some of these things personally, but what can I do to make a bigger difference?

Besides joining us, we highly recommend that you read more about living your own life more environmentally friendly. Talk to your friends, relatives and neighbors about these ideas. Join local neighborhood or block associations in the area and lobby them to consider promoting these ideas. But mostly, we believe that actions speak louder than words. Find something constructive and just do it. If you need some help, we are happy to help you get started.