Tonight: Reimagine Jay Street!

When it comes to my ride to work, Jay Street is what I consider a necessary evil. I’d rather avoid the mess of double-parked cars, u-turning police vehicles, and bottlenecked buses, but there’s no better direct route for getting to the Manhattan Bridge from where I live.  So, I, like so many other people who bike to work — not to mention the many pedestrians, transit users, and drivers who use the street as well — take a deep breath and hope for the best.

But as we’ve learned over the past few years, hoping for the best is a waiting game that’s not worth playing. Tonight you have a chance to do something about Jay Street. Lend your voice, ideas, suggestions, complaints, and full-on Dutch-inspired fantasies to a fantastic workshop that many hope will be the first major step toward redesigning this corridor.

Jay Street is the elephant in the room when it comes to bike safety in downtown Brooklyn and Vision Zero in general, affecting people from many different neighborhoods. What winds up working there could have big impacts on the rest of the city.  A huge show of support — which means bodies in the room — will go a long way toward fixing Jay Street for everyone and making a better city.

Reimagine Jay Street is tonight at 6:30 PM at 1 Metro Tech. The good news is that it’s on Jay Street, which is on your way home.