Two New Groups Join the PPW Bike Lane Battle

Gene Aronowitz, 73, will readily tell you he’s a “senior for safety,” though he does not count himself a member of the group by the same name, one of two groups for the removal of the now infamous Prospect Park West bike lane.

So, in response to Neighbors for Better Bike Lanes, Seniors for Safety and their “metastasizing” lawsuit, Aronowitz and a host of other locals today founded two new pro-lane organizations: “Neighbors for Better Neighbors” and “Seniors for Civility.”

“We clearly need a new group on Prospect Park West called Neighbors for Better Neighbors,” said Bill Carey, a Rockefeller University lab administrator, jazz musician and new father who has lived on Prospect Park West for seven years.

“Like the majority of my neighbors, I feel that the new Prospect Park West is nicer, safer and more accessible.”

Though the Prospect Park West bike lane has garnered plenty of support in the past—including a pro-lane that attracted hundreds—Aronowitz said that the group formed as a counterpoint to the over-the-top courtroom tactics of NBBL and SFS in their suit against the city, which was filed in March. The groups have subpoened nearly every public official and leader associated with the lanes, and asked for discovery proceedings though the suit was filed under Article 78, in which discovery does not usually take place.

“The older you get, the harder it can be to deal with change,” said Aronowitz, a Sunset Park resident who regularly uses the bike lane to for errands and exercise. “But the redesign of Prospect Park West is a change for the better. I invite my fellow seniors to join me for a bike ride. Prospect Park West is a safer, more inclusive street for everyone, young and old; by two-wheels, four-wheels or by foot.”