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September 21, 2011
Lay-by lane capacity at Barclays Center to be less than analyzed in 2006 environmental review; change may increase congestion around arena block
Atlantic Yards Watch
At the time the Sam Schwartz mitigation plan was detailed to the public in June, AYW reported that Barclays Center will have less in place at the time of the arena opening than anticipated in the 2006 FEIS: "fewer travel lanes for traffic, fewer lay-by lanes, and narrower sidewalks for pedestrians."
Thanks to the bollard plans before NYCDOT, it is now possible to see more clearly how this is so in relation to the arena block. In publishing the bollard plans several weeks ago, we wrote about the reduced effective widths of many of the sidewalks around the arena. The state of the lay-by lanes at the time of the arena opening will be similar, with one permanently changed and others with no construction schedule.
The function of lay-by lanes is to take traffic stopped for loading or unloading out of travel lanes. Fewer lay-by lanes mean there is a higher degree of risk for vehicle/vehicle and vehicle/pedestrian conflicts. It also potentially means increased congestion around the arena block.
The original 2006 project plan included lay-by lanes accommodating approximately 61 vehicle spaces on the arena block. This included 14 spaces in two lay-by areas on Flatbush, 7 spaces on Dean Street, 6 spaces on 6th Avenue, and 34 spaces on Atlantic Avenue. An additional lay-by-lane was to be located on Pacific Street adjacent to Site 5 within one year. Soon thereafter, lay-by lanes were to appear nearby in the second phase of the project which was to be completed in ten years. But the timetable of delivery of lay-by lanes changed in 2009 when the project plans were renegotiated to provide the developer up to 12 years to complete its obligations on the arena block as part of the first phase of the project's development.
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Related coverage...
Atlantic Yards Report, On the eve of AY District Service Cabinet Meeting, new information from AY Watch about reduced capacity of lay-by lanes
Will this be on the agenda of the meeting tomorrow? Can't say. The agenda's not publicly circulated.
Posted by eric at September 21, 2011 11:55 AM