Save Motorcycle Parking
Apr 9th, 2009 by Leo
I’ve gotten a few emails recently about a motorcycle parking area in the Financial District by Pier 13 that’s going to be taken away because of construction. If you sent me an email, sorry for the delay: let me just put my $0.02 here instead of replying one by one.
My first reaction to this news was, “There was free motorcycle parking on Pier 13?!?!” And it seems there is…or was… Beginning next week “The first phase of construction will take place on the waterfront between Wall Street and Maiden Lane; bus and motorcycle parking will be removed in April 2009″ (acc. to an official website). So what can we do about that?
The bad news is that we probably can’t do anything about these spaces because they will be starting construction. But the hope is, if we can make enough of a stink about it, they’ll offer up another area to park in and make sure to return the motorcycle parking area when the construction is over. If we do nothing (and by “we” I mean you folks who normally park there) then chances are you’ll never see motorcycle parking around there ever again.
So what can we do? First get the names and addresses of (1) the city council person for that district (I believe it’s Alan J. Gerson) along with any other council person that’s relevant (e.g., the council person for the district you live in, work in, etc) and the borough president Scott Stringer. (2) Craft a letter asking them to save motorcycle parking in that area. Write the letter on behalf of yourself and people who live near and work and frequent the businesses in the Financial District. If you have an idea of where they could create motorcycle parking, be sure to mention that.
For example: (you can take this and use it or write your own)
Dear Councilman Gerson,
I am a New Yorker who believes in the benefits of commuting by motorcycle and other powered two wheeled vehicles. Although New York has excellent public transportation, the subways and buses do not provide coverage to many parts of New Jersey and Staten Island or even parts of other boroughs to which I need to travel. Commuting by motorcycle has the benefits of causing less congestion and consuming less fuel than automobiles. It also takes considerably less space to park.
Up till now the city has offered motorcycle parking in the Financial District at Pier 13. This is being taken away from us as of April 14. This will have an enormous impact on many motorcyclists who live and work in the Financial District. We request that you help us save motorcycle parking in the Financial District.
Sincerely,
Sign your name
(3) Get as many names, addresses (you won’t be taken seriously without addresses – if you receive mail at work, you can use your work addresses), and signatures as you can get. Hit up all your buddies and co-workers, it doesn’t really matter if they ride or not, as long as they want to support those who do. (4) Make copies and send the mini-petition to as many elected government people as you can.
If you’re a hermit and just can’t get the signatures, then send the letter on your own. It’s a drop in the bucket, but each letter gets read and you should get a personal written response. If they get enough of them, they’ll be open to doing something… If you have an idea of what they *could* do such as ‘allow motorcycle parking on an unused section of Pier XYZ, then by all means, include that in your letter. They just might do it.
Stuff like this SOMETIMES works in NY. The good news for everyone else is: if it works in NY, it will work in your city as well. The people in elected offices need to hear from CityBikers…regular people who work and live in cities and ride motorcycles.
Related posts:
Hi I am one of the users of this parking area. Stupid question maybe but are there any other motorcycle only designated parking areas in Manhattan? I gotta move my bike by Monday!
Unfortunately, Alan J. Gerson is famously anti-motorcycle. He’s the driving force behind the attempt years ago to ban all motorcycles from the West Village, and he is the one pushing hard now for a law that calls for any motorcycle parked on Manhattan streets that does not have an EPA stamp on the exhaust pipe to be impounded.
Our efforts would be better spent supporting his opponent in the next election than trying to reason with him about anything benefitting motorcyclists. He hates us.
Is this the one by South Street Seaport? Thats a great spot.
Speaking of which, Did you guys know there is free long term motorcycle parking at JFK? That rocks!
This is tragic! How can they remove the parking without providing a new area for the bikes to be parked? All the while the are jacking up subway fares and cutting bus service.
Also, whats with the “tables & planters” in the middle of the road on Broadway? That whole job was $8 Million dollars! It ruined the flow of traffic, is a higher pedestrian/car risk, and is a complete eyesore!
This is a joke. There needs to be more public motorcycle parking and fact that they are taking this one away (at least in the short term) is ridiculous. Fee’s garages are charging now are absolutely out of control, at $225 and up in the West Village/Soho/Tribeca its flat out becoming unaffordable. Anyone have some good suggestions for cheap friendly 24hr parking south of 14th street and west of Broadway?
Gerson… Forget it. Total asshat.
Sanka I did read about the free long term at JFK. Do you by any chance know of anywhere a little closer to the Lower East Side thats a legal motorcycle only spot? At this point I would settle for somewhere on the island of Manhattan. The only alternatives at this point are (1) move it twice a week or (2) pay $160 plus taxes to park it in the East Village. Neither of which is really appealing right now.
Hi. Also a local resident & have parked here for years. According to the links, it is being eliminated not relocated. A huge loss for eco-friendly locals & commuters, as well as car-drivers who will now have more competition for spots in lower Manhattan. It is a part of of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation constructing parks in the area, which is obviously a great thing when its complete. But the motorcycle lot will not return afterwards. The above posts refer to the official plan of sacrificing both motorcycle & bus parking. However the vastly larger bus parking area has not yet been affected, while the motorcycle lot has been completely eliminated. It looks like they were hoping no one would notice in time to do anything, by posting signs just before the actual closure. I feel like the bike lot was a soft target for the LMDC. Lets try to get it reinstated somewhere nearby! Agree that appeals to councilmembers would not be as effective as attending the actual LMDC meetings and community board meetings. If only we knew earlier. Thanks!
Jeremy,
I know your pain, this is the first season i stored the bike and not having to deal with alternate side and people who knock bikes over is a blessing.
I think you are out luck my friend. The only alternatives are parking it in storage in a brooklyn (which is as close to the east side of manhattan as your getting) or try parking on the sidewalk and risk the ticket (13th and 12th street btwn 1st and 3rd seem to be ok).
Also try asking local supers around your area, they sometimes have areas that they might not mind renting out for a bike. Good Luck
Abe and Jesse, I hear ya… The anti-motorcycle crowd has all the markings of bigotry: A personal, irrational, and non-negotiable hatred of other people’s background or personal choices.
You’re right, all we can do is call them out and then vote for someone else when they refuse to listen.
Ok. I work right across the street from this lot. I’m actually looking at it right now from my window. I don’t have a bike, but will be getting one in the next two weeks, and this lot was one reason why I wanted to get a bike. Now that it’s gone, I am extremely disappointed.
Apparently, this happened as a result of eminent(sp?) domain, where the government can basically take whatever land they want from you as long as they feel it’s necessary. Where to park? Well, there are random spots by the seaport which, if I remember correctly, are free. The citigroup building across the street from the lot had their sidewalk redone. They’re still doing some final work to it, but I realized a few days ago that the parking on that street is now free. Cars on that particular street park very far apart from eachother, which means that you could probably fit about ten bikes along that short block. It’s tough though, because it’s back in public, and a VERY tight street. In two weeks, one of those spaces will be occupied by me.
Side note: I just found this site about two hours ago and haven’t been able to stop reading. Because of this wonderful place, I’ll probably get fired from my job and not have a need to park down there at all! THANKS, YOU WONDERFUL JERKS!!!!
Just rode in to work for the first time this season and found out about this lot being eliminated. I guess the $180? ticket I’m going to get is as much as paying for a car spot all day. Great!
i left my motorcycle in the south street lot over the winter months but when i went to collect it 3 weeks ago i discovered it missing… i’ve contacted the 1st precinct, sanitation dept, tow pound, construction co. and others…no one has any record of it!
does anyone know where they were relocated to?? PLEASE let me know…
Hey Nicki,
That stinks…
If you’ve filed a report with the Police, there’s nothing you can do but wait. If it was towed (and not stolen) then it can take up to 4 months before it shows up at the impound lot in Flushing. I don’t know what they do with the bikes for 4 months, but if that happens, you’ll get a letter in September giving you a day’s notice to come pick it up before they start charging you for “storage.” At which point you’ll need to rent a truck to go pick it up (they don’t let you drive it out even if there’s nothing wrong with it).
Good luck with that, let us know if it turns up sooner!
If anyone it interested in motorcycle parking in NYC, there is a CITY COUNCIL HEARING on Thursday at 11 am regarding Intro 980, a bill to compel the DOT to devise a plan for motorcycle & scooter parking.
FYI: I’ll be there, and will speak. My intent will be to say that 980 is a good start, but needs to go further. Specifically, that motorcycles and scooters need street parking separate from automobiles, due to their small weight and size (and resultant susceptibility to damage and theft). I will be pushing for a San Francisco style plan.
Photos of SF (for those of you who want to get really depressed about the situation in NYC):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cactusthesaint/sets/72157619342239726/
FYI 2:
http://www.nyccouncil.info/html/calendar/calendar_meetingdetail.cfm?meetingid=5617
(Sorry for not posting these in a single message. Blog is not permitting me to do so.)
thanks for that leo, i’ll keep an eye on the mail and fingers crossed… i have a feeling someone has it somewhere – even if they’re not supposed to!
Got myself a good ol $115.00 ticket this morning. What a pain! I need to start removing my plate, because out of the five bikes right near me, I was the only one that recieved a ticket.
You might not want to start removing your plates just yet! The city is on a towing blitz, and they’re taking fingerprints… http://nyscooterclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=12479
NYC Rider – where did you get the ticket? I have parked at work recently with 3 other bikes. We all use covers. The scooters remove their plates.
There needs to be dedicated parking for bikes. I just got knocked over three weeks ago (500 damage) and now this weekend (300 damage).
It’s not fair to pay because cars can’t drive. I am sick of repairs. I am at the point of getting a skateboard.
Bloomberg and his green plan can help. Barcelona is a city of many scooters and I recall he visited the city to investigate their bicycle rental program. Bikes and scooters are energy efficient vehicles, they deserve more respect. Don’t know how to proceed with this, but I hope someone has a good idea out there.
Wow! This is a total travesty. For the past 14 years I have workeed on Wall and Broadway and right before the horror of 9/11, I parked every day for free at Washington and Battery in the “triangle” that was MC parking only for FREE. I am sad to see that the Seaport is now off limits too. I see a lot of bikes going down Broadway in the mornings and I truly winder where they are parking and what sort of chances they are taking.