A walk in the park now is no walk in the park
Manhattan: Dear Mayor Adams: For many New Yorkers, myself among them, Central Park is the green space where one can enjoy a beautiful setting, get much-needed exercise, unwind and de-stress. In the past few years, however, Central Park has become stressful and dangerous. It takes a good deal of fortitude to step within its bounds. Mopeds, electric bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards and full-on motorcycles now dominate the bike lane, vying for space in what used to be a recreational zone. Now it’s a highway. Also within this lane are horse carriages, pedicabs, park worker vehicles, speed cyclists and rollerbladers. The electric bikes and scooters operate at dangerously fast speeds. When crowded, the drivers of the wheeled devices have no compunction about going over into the much smaller walk/run lane — sometimes even in the opposite direction!
The Bridle Trail, which is probably the only place runners can be on soil as opposed to concrete or asphalt, gets scores of clueless bicyclists. No bikes are allowed! This policy is never enforced, and I have seen many a bicyclist wheel right past a manned police SUV with impunity. The other day, I crossed at the park by 59th St. and Broadway, and a car went right through the red light and almost hit me. I looked up at the police vehicle parked across the street. They didn’t see it; they were too busy looking at their phones. I know that the mayor cannot be expected to micromanage every issue that occurs in our great city. However, this is an item that I think needs his attention.