“This all but guarantees that there will be blood on Eric Adams’ hands”; Judge Lifts Temporary Restraining Order, Allowing Adams Administration to Rip Out Safety Improvements on Bedford Avenue

On the northernmost four blocks of the Bedford Avenue safety improvements, injuries have nearly halved.

On the entire stretch of the new protected bike lane, pedestrian injuries have fallen 38% and all injuries have fallen 12%.

Two pedestrians were killed by drivers on Bedford Avenue in 2024, but since the safety improvements were installed, no one has died on the corridor in 2025.

NEW YORK — Today, a judge allowed the Adams administration to proceed with its plan to remove the Bedford Avenue safety improvements and protected bike lane. The judge lifted the temporary restraining order and denied the petition brought by Transportation Alternatives and Williamsburg father Baruch Herzfeld, represented by Peter Beadle, J.D.

The judge’s decision is missing any mention of Exhibit B, the Department of Transportation’s own June 2025 report stating that removing the protected bike lane would open the City to liability by making Bedford Avenue less safe. DOT’s presentation, filed with the court, states that, “Between DeKalb and Flushing overall injuries are down 47%.” This is far above the average benefit typically seen from such designs (17%), and highlights just how dangerous Bedford Avenue was before the recent redesign. DOT acknowledges that “Removing the protected bike lane (PBL) won’t remove cyclists—it will only make the street less safe.” DOT’s presentation also warns that, should the Adams administration succeed in ripping out the safety improvements, “The City risks legal liability for knowingly reducing safety on a Vision Zero priority corridor.”

Statement from Ben Furnas, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives:

“Mayor Eric Adams wants to make Bedford Avenue more dangerous for everyone walking, biking, and driving along the street — and today, a judge agreed that his administration can move forward with ripping up proven street safety improvements. 

“We’re frustrated by this decision, but all the more incensed at Mayor Eric Adams endangering New York families just trying to get home safely. If the Bedford Avenue safety improvements are destroyed, this all but guarantees that there will be blood on Eric Adams’ hands. This is not how a mayor committed to Vision Zero behaves, and while this decision allows the mayor to move forward, it doesn’t compel him to.

“Mayor Adams can make a different choice: he can follow the data and his own agency’s advice and enact real solutions for the community, rather than rip out proven safety measures.

“Treating this as a mere ‘modification’ to a bike lane is an insult to decades of work and thousands of pages of research that prove that protected bike lanes save lives. To pretend a protected bike lane and a line of paint between bikes and speeding cars are the same thing is a slap in the face to families who have lost loved ones in crashes.

“We are committed to fighting for the safety of all New Yorkers and all New York City streets, and are exploring our options as to how to move forward to protect Brooklyn families in spite of Mayor Adams’ reckless, politically motivated backtracking.”

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