“MAKE McGUINNESS SAFE” is a proposal to reduce McGuinness Blvd to TWO LANES ONLY by removing traffic lanes on both sides. ONE LANE IN EACH DIRECTION. Narrowing McGuinness Blvd will destroy the most efficient and safest way to route commuters in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

“Make McGuinness Safe” is a private group. They produced videos showing NYS Assembly Member Emily Gallagher and City Council Member Lincoln Restler endorsing a “vision” of McGuinness Blvd that thoroughly aligns with that of the powerful lobbying group “Transportation Alternatives.” Transportation Alternatives is an anti-car bike centric group with a stated mission to “reclaim New York City’s streets from the automobile” and is funded by major corporations such as Uber, Lyft, Blackrock, TwoTrees, Steve Hindy of Brooklyn Brewery (sits on board of Transportation Alternatives and North Brooklyn Parks Alliance) and Amazon [see link here] . In fact, CM Lincoln Restler is against private ownership of vehicles. He is actively designing our neighborhood to be less accessible for ordinary citizens so that it may be dominated by rideshare companies like Uber, Lyfty, Citibike, and Getaround. All funders of Transportation Alternatives and NYS Assembly Emily Gallagher and CM Lincoln Restler's special interests.

While improvements to McGuinness Blvd are desired and needed, “Make McGuinness Safe” has been biased from the start with no sincere examination of the impact this proposal will have on our side streets, our residents, and the hundreds of local businesses who have been committed to our area for decades, in some cases for 100 years. Transportation Alternatives, NYS Gallagher and CM Lincoln Restler’s proposal doesn’t observe that McGuinness Blvd is a coastal evacuation route, has a firehouse located on it or serves as a necessity for businesses. Reducing McGuinness Blvd to two lanes, will push out many union jobs located in Greenpoint. Many businesses have spoken out about the economic impact of diminishing McGuinness Blvd with Assembly Member Gallagher and Council Member Restler. The politicians have decided to put the interests of their donors above the best interests of the community as a whole.

Reducing McGuinness Blvd to two lanes will:

-       Divert considerable truck and car traffic to the quiet, narrow, one-way residential streets flanking McGuinness Blvd.

-       Create extended backed-up congestion on McGuinness Blvd itself.

-       Harm small business by making their storefronts and worksites less accessible for day-to-day needs/deliveries, and impede access for workers, owners and customers.      

-        Harm our local middle-class residents by driving away the union jobs and large employers of North Greenpoint that have been here for decades.

-       Create delays for NYPD, FDNY and EMT’s while responding locally to emergencies and/or transporting patients to hospitals – none of which are nearby.

-      Doesn't create a more safe McGuinness Blvd for pedestrians. Mr. Jensen is the PS110 teacher Emily Gallagher, Lincoln Restler and Make McGuinness safe are using as the icon and symbol for change on McGuinness. Had a two-way bike lane been present at the time of his unfortunate death the outcome would have resulted the same.  

We demand the NYC DOT’s redesign of McGuinness Blvd. preserve the traffic lanes currently present and “Make McGuinness Safe” proposal be rejected. Some changes we welcome:  renovation of median, crosswalks, pedestrian signals and traffic signals being adjusted.