You are reading

200 Cyclists Hit Flushing Streets for 3rd Annual Tour de Flushing

Cyclists at Sunday’s event (Photo via Transportation Alternatives)

July 17, Shane O’Brien

More than 200 cyclists joined Assemblywoman Nily Rozic and State Senator John Liu in a 15-mile bike ride through the streets of Eastern Queens this past weekend, to showcase the area’s bike network and highlight its economic value.

The third annual Tour de Flushing took place on Sunday, July 14. It began and ended in Downtown Flushing, passing by or through seven different parks in the region. To make the case for connecting business centers to bike networks, organizers stated that local business owners made “thousands of dollars” from the tour riders.

This year’s ride featured a bike dedicated to Allison Hope Liao, who was killed by a motorist on Flushing’s Main Street in 2013.

The 2019 Tour de Flushing, which was sponsored by pedestrian crash victim lawyers Vaccaro and White, also featured an optional four-mile leg in Douglastown, creating the longest route in the event’s three-year history at 19 miles. The optional leg also encompassed the newly installed protected bike lanes on Northern Boulevard.

Liu said that the Tour was an invitation to the community to explore Queens’ expanding bike network and one-of-a-kind parks in the same journey.

“The event has everything going for it — fellowship, the opportunity to share how biking in Queens can be made better, great food from local businesses and sophisticated organization by community members who understand the love of bike riding,” Liu said. “I look forward to it every year.”

Rozic commended those who were involved in organizing the bike ride and also stated that there was still work to do in order to make Queens’ streets safe for everyone who used them.

Juan Restrepo, Queens Organizer for Transportation Alternatives, said that the event was an opportunity to ride the greenways of the borough and urged the city to continue implementing bike lanes across Queens.

“We are pleased to see the city continuing to put in more bike lanes as well. Many of these bike lanes were used on the ride to help bring riders young and old to the parks,” Restrepo said. “We encourage the city to continue its efforts to put more bike lanes in Downtown Flushing and the greater Eastern Queens area.”

email the author: [email protected]
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Queens DA, elected officials highlight recent scams targeting older adults, add advice on self-protection

Two days after Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced she had brought charges against a Flushing man for scamming more than $600,000 from seniors across the country, her office hosted a presentation at the Ridgewood Older Adult Center on Mar. 12 to coach participants on how they can avoid being victims of similar schemes.

“Education is key to preventing fraudulent activity, particularly among the senior population,” Katz said. “To this end, my office has been actively engaging with senior centers across the borough, providing insights on the warning signs of common scams.”

Northeast Queens house burglar remains at large nearly a month after breaking into two homes: NYPD

Police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing are still searching for a man who broke into two homes last month in Kew Gardens Hills and Murray Hill, making off with more than $10,000 in cash and jewelry.

The burglar first struck on the evening of Monday, Feb. 26, when he entered a private residence near 138th Street and 62nd Avenue in Kew Gardens Hills, just two blocks south of the Long Island Expressway. The suspect broke into the home by breaking a rear window at around 7 p.m. Once inside, he allegedly removed jewelry valued at approximately $2,000 before running off in an unknown direction, police said.

Flushing man charged with criminally negligent homicide in collision that killed youngster in East Elmhurst: DA

A Flushing man was criminally charged in connection to a fatal collision that killed an 8-year-old boy in East Elmhurst on Wednesday afternoon.

Jose Barcia, 52, was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Thursday on charges of criminally negligent homicide and other crimes for running over Bayron Palomino Arroyo and injuring his 10-year-old brother in front of their mother while they were in the crosswalk at 31st Avenue and 100th Street.

$117 million federal grant boosts QueensWay Project: A 3.5-mile greenway connecting six neighborhoods in Queens

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and members of the Queens Congressional delegation announced a $117 million federal grant for the QueensWay project’s Forest Park Pass section, which includes 9 acres stretching from Union Turnpike through Forest Park to Park Lane South.

The full QueensWay project will be a 3.5-mile, 47-acre linear park that transforms a stretch of abandoned railway into green space, as well as a transportation corridor featuring pedestrian and bike-friendly paths that connect six neighborhoods from Forest Hills to Ozone Park. The project will provide safe alternative routes to twelve schools, seven subway lines, and one commuter line (LIRR), along with local businesses.