Bike Community Goes After John Liu Over Yassky's Bill

Transportation Alternatives

Tensions surfaced this week between members of the city's cycling community and Councilman John Liu over a piece of legislation—the Bicycle Access to Buildings Bill—that has yet to make it out of the City Council Transportation Committee, which Mr. Liu chairs.

The bill, which was first introduced back in 2003 and has resurfaced in various incarnations since then, would require office buildings to let tenants store bikes in the buildings, hence encouraging more people to commute to work by bike, hence advancing the bike-friendly, semi-car-hostile transportation agenda being pushed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Kahn.

The bill was expected to be voted out of the transportation committee on Tuesday afternoon and passed by the full City Council the following day. But that didn't happen. A spokesman for Councilman David Yassky, who originally authored the bill--and, not insignificantly, is Mr. Liu's opponent in the 2009 city comptroller race--told Streetsblog on Tuesday: "The bill has been laid on council members' desks for eight days, which is typically what is done before a bill comes before the full council. That was done with the anticipation that it would be voted out of the transportation committee today."

Now, supporters of the bike bill are coming down on Mr. Liu because the bill remains stalled.

Initially, it looked like Mr. Liu was going to support the bill. Last September, he rallied for its passage alongside transportation advocates at City Hall. He's pictured above standing next to Paul Steely White, executive director of Transportation Alternatives, which worked with the Council in drafting the bill. Both men happy and smiling!

That was before Mr. Liu decided to get into the comptroller's race, and it may or may not a coincidence that he is now seemingly obstructing a bill that is credited to one of his more competitive opponents.

The change in Mr. Liu's behavior has, of course, soured his relationship with Transportation Alternatives, which circulated the following message in its bi-monthly StreetBeat newsletter on Wednesday afternoon:

It looks like John Liu is flip-flopping on the Bike Access to Buildings bill.

When T.A. started this most recent campaign for bicycle access to commercial buildings, Council Member Liu stood with us on the steps of City Hall. He spoke at our rally and welcomed the groundbreaking Intro. 871 into his Transportation Committee. Now, after two favorable hearings, something has changed.

On July 1st, the New York City Council was expected to pass the Bicycle Access to Buildings bill by an overwhelming majority, opening the door to thousands of would-be bike commuters by dealing with the number one deterrent to riding: fear of theft. After three years, things looked to be lined up for the bill to pass through Liu's Transportation Committee to a resounding 'yes' on the Council floor. But, that clearly didn't happen. To make a long, confusing story short, Liu has now decided that the Bicycle Access to Buildings bill may not belong in his committee at all, despite the previous eight months of work by his transportation committee staff, involving extensive discussions with the DOT, DOB, Mayor's Office, REBNY and community advocates. This development will, at best, push back a full vote on the legislation to the city Council's July stated meeting. Why the sudden change of heart?

It's worth noting that it is highly unusual for a committee chair to put a great deal of work into a bill and then suggest it would be better off in another committee.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Liu's campign told us there was no vote scheduled for the legislation on Tuesday, and, she said, that means it's unfair to say Mr. Liu didn't move on it. We put in calls and sent emails to both Mr. Liu's and Mr. Yassky's offices Thursday afternoon, but have not heard back.

During a joint hearing of the Council’s Transportation and Consumer Affairs committees last month, Mr. Liu repeatedly expressed concern over a component of the bill that he said created a loopole for building owners who might seek an exemption from the new rules, and he sparred with Ms. Sadik-Kahn over whether the bill should fall under the purview of the D.O.T. or the Department of Buildings. (He also criticized the D.O.T., to Ms. Sadik-Kahn's visible disapproval, for "inconsistency" in its handling of cycling and pedestrian safety issues.)

But the hearing ended with an agreement between committee members and Ms. Sadik-Kahn that the bill simply needed some additional tweaking, and with Mr. Yassky expressing optimism that it could get passed "quickly."

In the meantime, Transportation Alternatives has launched a campaign urging supporters of the bill to contact Mr. Liu's offices by phone or eFax. The Council is scheduled to have a stated meeting this month, which would be its next opportunity to pass the legislation.