Astoria business group sues NYC to block new bike lane below subway tracks

Frustrated business owners along 31st Street in Astoria, Queens, sued the city Friday in a last-ditch effort to halt construction of a new protected bike lane.

More than a dozen businesses say the transportation department ignored their concerns and pushed through plans for a bike lane that will interfere with commerce at shops relying on daily pickup and deliveries to survive. The Department of Transportation's plan aims to install a protected bike lane on the curb running below elevated N and W subway tracks.

The agency pointed to data showing 190 injuries to drivers, pedestrians and cyclists along the stretch between 2020 and 2024, which were attributed in part to poor visibility due to columns in the road supporting the tracks.

Dan Monaco, a spokesperson for the businesses, said that the city gave their concerns short shrift and barreled ahead with the plan to install the new lane from Newtown to 36th avenues.

“The one-two punch of DOT coming in and doing this project, which is going to harm businesses and the community, and also pretending that they care about what the community has to say, has been extremely frustrating,” Monaco said.

Transportation officials say the lane will be a key segment in a growing network of safe bicycle routes in Western Queens.

“This redesign of 31st Street — a corridor with a high number of serious and fatal crashes — addresses critical safety needs by better organizing traffic and improving visibility, all while keeping vehicles moving,” agency spokesperson Will Livingston said.

The proposed redesign includes dedicated loading zones for businesses on every block, as well as spots for taxis to pick up and drop off passengers.

Businesses have been voicing similar complaints about bike lanes since the city started installing them, but it's unclear if the lanes have ever hurt revenue.  Local businesses on Skillman Avenue in Queens experienced a boom after a bike lane was installed, according to Streetsblog.

The businesses that signed on to the lawsuit include a truck driving school, a Greek food truck called King Souvlaki and an auto shop.

King Souvlaki's owners said the city's approach has been "vile" and they have been "vilified" for speaking out against the plan, according to court papers.

Monaco said the business owners hope Mayor Eric Adams’ administration will heed the businesses’ complaints. He cited Adams’ recent decision to rip up a section of the protected Bedford Avenue bike lane.

“ It showed that projects that were deemed to be not beneficial to the community could be reversed,” he said.

In the lawsuit, the group calls the bike lane a “Trojan horse” in the city’s broader plan to create 50 miles of protected bike lanes annually to reduce car traffic. The lawsuit alleges that the redesign violates the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause by individually benefiting bicyclists at the expense of the broader community.