Another day, another story about the growing interest in pushing New Yorkers to travel via bicycle.

Yesterday it was reported that the Administration is considering changing zoning regulations to require parking space for bicycles as any part of new development. Many pro-bike groups agree that more parking space is needed. Today, the New York Post is outlining the bike/pedestrian friendly moves made over the last few years. The City even has a Bicycle Network Development program.

Is this a good policy push for NYC?

The high cost of gasoline this summer may have led some commuters to move into bicycle transportation as a way of saving money. A city study this summer supports that point by describing the 35% increase in Staten Island Ferry commuters were traveling with bikes. Some believe this is a trend that is growing.

The obvious benefit of this new trend are numerous - less crowded streets/traffic, less polution, energy conservation, cost savings to commuters and healthier commuter lifestyles to name a few.

The less-than-obvious kinks in this trend is that even with all the growth in the use of bicycle as a form of NYC transportation is that they still only account for less than 1% of the overall commuter population, that during cold months the widespread use of bicycles is difficult at best and that many New Yorkers are just not in good enough physical shape to take advantage of the City's effort.

Therefore, is the creation of bike lanes that are often completely empty during rush hour - constricting the flow of automobile and bus traffic - a good idea?

Although I think it is a good idea for the City to encourage the use of bicycles, the push that is going on by the Administration makes little sense. Constricting traffic along Broadway on the Upper West Side creates congestion and doesn't encourage more bicycle riders. In a time where New York City is experiencing economic difficulty, the City should not be spending any of it's precious resources building and planning bike lanes. Honestly, with the significant reduction in gas prices recently, most commuters don't feel the need to leave thier cars in the garage when traveling to work.

Like the placing of calorie counts in chain restaurants and handing out NYC brand condoms in our subways, the Mayor's push for a more "bicycle-friendly" City is, at a minimum, forcing his personal beliefs about an issue down New Yorker's throats and is, potentially, a willful attempt to create more traffic by constricted Street redesign - creating a ever stronger argument for a Congestion Pricing Plan for Manhattan.

There's nothing wrong with encouraging the use of bicycles and encouraging employers and developers to make space for the traveling devices to be parked safely and conveniently. But in a City where a chicken can run twice as fast as a NYC bus, constricting roads and diverting traffice for empty bicycle lanes makes little sense....