Tour Park Slope on a Bike as Part of Jane’s Walk NYC

This weekend the city will be filled with tourists from near and far as part of Jane's Walk NYC, a series of more than 100 free guided walks and bike rides throughout the five boroughs from May 4 to 5. 

In Park Slope on Saturday, May 4, two of the neighborhood’s very own kin—Eric McClure of Park Slope Neighbors and Doug Gordon of BrooklynSpoke.com— will lead a bike tour: Bike to the Future: Brooklyn’s Burgeoning Bicycling Infrastructure.  

McClure and Gordon will meet riders (this “leisurely paced ride” is appropriate for cyclists who are 12 years old and up) at Bartel-Pritchard Square on Prospect Park West and 15th Street, near The Pavilion (188 Prospect Park West) at noon.  

The bike tour will end at 1:30 p.m. at Gorilla Coffee, 97 5th Avenue at Park Place.  

This tour will be partially accessible to everyone who can ride a bike, there will be curbs, uneven terrain, and busy sidewalks.  

According to The Municipal Art Society of New York City’s website, “Cycling in New York City has grown by leaps and bounds during Mayor Michael Bloomberg's 12 years in office. With his tenure coming to an end on December 31st, the city's transportation department is busy putting the finishing touches on the Mayor's bike-friendly legacy,” so this year’s "Jane's Ride" tour through Park Slope will highlight the newest aspects of the ‘hood’s bike infrastructure, such as its newly planned bike lanes, bike corrals and the first local station of the soon-to-launch CitiBike bike-share program on Fourth Avenue and Dean Street.  

McClure’s and Gordon’s bike tour is described as a “leisurely paced ride,” however, it will transverse on a few streets without bike lanes.  

In order to participate, you’ll need a bike of your own, or rent one at Ride Brooklyn, on Bergen Street between Flatbush and Fifth avenues. New York City law mandates helmets for anyone under 14 years old.  

At the same time in nearby Gowanus, the Groundswell Community Mural Project will lead a mural tour.  

Click here to read tips and find all the events part of Jane's Walk NYC, which was created to commemorate the life and legacy of urbanist Jane Jacobs.