This video discusses a successful pilot program in New York City that installed a protected bike lane between the sidewalk and the parked cars along a busy street in Manhattan.
This protected bike lane sacrificed some parking spots but provided a reduction in crashes, a bump in business activity, and better traffic flow-patterns.
Teaching Tips
Positives
The video highlights the ability of individuals to make beneficial changes for their community.
Additional Prerequisites
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Students may benefit from seeing other large cities (many in Europe) that embrace larger sidewalks and bike lanes as well.
Differentiation
Social studies and science classes could use this video to discuss the many health and social benefits of having more walkable and bikeable cities, including a reduction in pollution from vehicle exhaust.
Engineering, math, and design classes could use this video to inspire a student project to design a bike path or bike lane in their community.
This resource is a 5-minute video that looks at the history of bike lanes, and in particular protected bike lanes, in New York City. The challenges with designing and getting support for introducing these bike lanes is first discussed, and then the benefits and possibilities of further expansion of bike lanes is presented. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Standards
Social Studies
Geography
Geography 2 (D1): Students understand geographic aspects of unity and diversity in Maine, the United States, and various world cultures, including Maine Native Americans, by summarizing and interpreting the relationship between geographic features and cultures of Maine Native Americans, and historical and recent immigrant groups in Maine, the United States, and the world.
