Looking for something fun to do this weekend? We’ve got you covered.

Bike Bonanza

Saturday, May 18, 11-3pm

Douglass/Greene Park

3rd Ave & Douglass Street
Brooklyn

The three classes that created the most original and compelling scripts received cash prizes and worked with a professional videographer to produce videos of their PSAs. The winners are:

1st Place,  I’m Walkin’

PS94Q, 4th grade ($1,000)

2nd Place, Let Your Feet Meet the Street

PS19R, 5th Grade ($750)

3rd Place

Academy of Innovative Technology, 9th and 10th grade ($500)

About We’re Walking Here

New York City is a city of walkers. The majority of young New Yorkers walk to and from school, to transit and around their city each and every day. Every October—International Walk to School Month—NYC DOT celebrates this achievement and creates incentives for students and their families to walk more often through the We’re Walking Here program. Visit NYC DOT to learn more and to sign up for updates about this year’s 2013 competition.

PSA Videos

With the guidance of Groundswell Artist, Frank Parga, the seniors created “RESPECT:  Embrace your community” and the students created “This is Our Safety Zone.” On May 10^th, the signs were installed by the NYCDOT Bronx Borough Engineering/Bronx Sign Shop and dedicated at ceremonies attended by the program artists and community members.  See the signs outside of Pio Mendez Center, 291 Lafayette Avenue and MS 424, 730 Bryant Avenue.

About StreetWise Hunts Point

StreetWise Hunts Point is a two-year campaign that uses a series of community mural-making and sign-design projects to engage community members in identifying and prioritizing transportation and related-environmental concerns in their South Bronx community.   With support from the Rockefeller Foundation Cultural Innovation Fund, Groundswell engages youth, artists, and other community members in the identification of transportation-related concerns in the South Bronx and recommendation of design, signage, and policy solutions with the NYC Department of Transportation.

This spring, NYCDOT’s Urban Art Program is partnering with Groundswell, Urban Assembly School of Music & Art and NYCHA’s Whitman-Ingersoll Houses create a mural on the Navy Street pedestrian bridge in Ft. Greene, Brooklyn.   

On Wednesday, May 8th, NYC DOT Safety Education & Outreach  led a workshop for youth artists, helping them understand the importance of sharing our streets.   Over the next four weeks the team of youth, led by two professional artists, will research, design and fabricate the piece “Unity and Safety in Ft. Greene.”

Looking for something fun to do this weekend? We’ve got you covered.

Bike Bonanza

Saturday, May 11, 11-3pm

Coffey Park, Red Hook

Verona and Richards Streets, Red Hook, Brooklyn

This past January, DOT’s Cheryl Johnson worked with three fourth grade classes from PS/IS 104 in  Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, to help  students recognize the importance of street safety in their community. As part of the DOT Safety Education curriculum, students surveyed the streets in their area, recorded speeds of passing vehicles, analyzed recorded data, and drew conclusions about street improvements to make roads even safer.

Students making observations outside of the school.

While the students enjoyed all the activities, the speed observations were their favorite. PS/IS 104 is located in a quiet, residential area of Bay Ridge, but it is flanked by high traffic and busy roadways, including Fourth Avenue, where DOT is looking to redesign the street for added safety.

Although cars were not found to be exceeding the speed limit during the speed activity, drivers did slow down when they saw students using the speed detector. This goes to show that when it comes to safety, driver awareness can make a big difference.  And the same goes for the students. By the end of their DOT workshop, they all agreed just how important it is to be more mindful and aware of the streets around them, and the things they can do as pedestrians to help make their city and their neighborhoods safer.

This spring, DOT will be working on safety improvements in Bay Ridge and Park Slope.  Students from this school and all along the 4th Avenue corridor can make their voices heard by speaking to the Community Board about their concerns.  We look forward to a safe 4th Avenue due in part to the work of these students.

Looking for something fun to do this weekend? We’ve got you covered. With spring in full swing, there are several bicycle related events all around the city.

Check one out!

Earth Day Rockaway – Free Bicycle Helmet Fitting Event

Saturday, May 4, 12-4pm

MoMA PS1 Dome

Beach 94th Street & Shorefront Parkway, Queens

Many of the 25 senior centers involved in the Walking Wisely program are in DOT’s Safe Streets for Seniors areas. These are locations where DOT is making targeted engineering improvements, like adjusting signals to allow for a few extra seconds of crossing time or installing concrete safety islands to shorten walking distances, to make the streets safer for all New Yorkers, especially older pedestrians.

Seniors who have participated in Walking Wisely say it’s helped sharpen their street smarts by reminding them about just how fun and safe walking can be. They also liked the theater element and the  professional actors that performed at the centers. Most of all, they recognize that the suggestions they give about improving pedestrian safety in their neighborhoods are being incorporated into current and future safety projects in their areas.

Bike bells are an important part of safe cycling. Use a bell to signal your presence to fellow cyclists, pedestrians and other road users. As a pedestrian, stay alert and listen for all traffic sounds, including bike bells. That little “ding” gives everyone out on the street a heads up and helps prevent collisions.

Check the NYC DOT calendar for a giveaway near you.

Fresh from Canada, this brand new New Yorker gets her bike outfitted with some help from Renso of NYC DOT.

Let’s get a thumbs up for giving pedestrians a heads up with new bike bell.

Ready to roll with a bike bell and a new 2013 bike map.