Submitted by efronerberger t3_zrc9w7 in jerseycity
Is Jersey City generally safe for street cycling? Provided that I'm following all the laws, of course. Are there any strict laws against locking a bicycle up to street signs?
Also, any bike shop recommendations are also welcome. Thank you!
people are very hard on the bike infrastructure here (myself included) but there is a decent amount of it, provided you are willing to ride the street to get to it. there is now a PBL between my neighborhood (the heights) and downtown, which has been very welcome and useful, but i have to do a fair amount of street riding before and after it. i dont mind it, but yes you have to be hyper aware as there are some really absent-minded drivers around.
i use jersey cycles in the heights and have enjoyed my experience with them a handful of times for simple jobs/repairs.
Where is the PBL?
newark ave from like 6th st downtown, up the hill to palisade ave at Dickinson HS
Biked a ton in jc, years and years and years of it. Only been almost killed a handful of times, so statistically, yes.
Bike network is okay downtown, with a few connections elsewhere. Generally the biggest problem is connections though. You'll end up street riding inevitably. This can vary from extremely safe to extremely dangerous depending on which road you need to do it on.
Grove St Bikes is a great shop in town. Pretty well stocked and knowledgeable. They do good work, decently fast, and definitely take care of their customers. If you're looking for a new bike they only sell Giant so don't be afraid to shop around.
I've been riding bikes in downtown JC for the past 12 years. It's got much better in the past few years with the PBL's starting to appear. North and South bike lanes are still shared with cars, so as long as you're comfortable with that it's fine. I recommend riding defensively, assume cars will not check their mirrors when turning, not yield to you in general, and entertain the possibility that cars will run stop signs. Hyper awareness and visibility is key.
I enjoyed street cycling for exercise before moving to Jersey City. To gauge my interest level. I’d say I was probably averaging about 100 miles a week. I kept riding for about a month, then I decided it wasn’t worth the stress with the local drivers. I could loop the same parks, but that gets boring quick so I switched to a Peloton.
Are you me? I used to average well over 100 miles in JC and NYC, then I switched to mostly weekend riding in LSP, and some waterfront riding, but gave that up because it does get old fast, and once you get on River Road it is simply too dangerous to deal with those drivers. Not sure what it is, but the drivers all over Hudson County are positively insanely aggressive. I switched to Peloton in 2014, kept at it for 5+ years and about to start up again since I miss riding but don't feel like dealing with all the stress. I still ride along the waterfront from time to time, but even that feels stressful at times as people walk around meandering all over the place with their faces buried in their phones, while others walk their dogs in retractable leashes without keeping them close by, so I am constantly having to avoid collisions. Just too much nonsense in general. So frustrating, really.
I commuted by bike over the GW into NYC from JC for a few years until the pandemic, and there's a much more sedate, bike friendly, and picturesque route north if you stay up on the cliff. I tried river road a handful of times years ago and then went looking for alternatives. Anyway, just a suggestion if you are feeling like getting back out on the road at all.
From time to time I do the Palisades Interstate Park route that enters just south of the GW bridge and meanders its way all the way to the Park headquarters, and then continues. It's a beautiful ride (heck, even had a first date with an Italian beauty that consisted of doing that ride and then swinging back into NYC) but getting there is the biggest headache, really. I have tried going up Central Avenue and that's just as bad. At least with River Road you can sort of avoid some of the nonsense by riding along the waterfront, though that is also not super convenient due to its haphazard layout. In any case, that whole ride through the park, all the way up to Nyack, is positively beautiful and really, really nice. I should give it a go again. It's been a long while.
Yeah it's the getting to Fort Lee that is hard, but I've spent a lot of time refining my route. I focus on quieter one way streets so definitely not Central . It's actually a delightful route! Not a detailed screenshot, but gives you the idea. https://imgur.com/iw6AVpC.jpg
thanks for the map! I will go get my bikes out of storage, do some basic maintenance, and then venture out at some point during the Winter break.
I don't own a car so I bike to work and for all my errands. I've been doing this for the past few years mostly on streets without any bike infrastructure. After a while you learn which streets to avoid but I've found most of them to be comfortable enough and the protected bike lane network has been steadily growing the past few years.
I've used the Jersey City Bicycle Company who have provided amazing service.
The bike infrastructure in JC is decent and constantly improving. You have to be smart about which streets you ride on of course. The drivers here suck, so always ride defensively.
It’s definitely getting better. Lots of bike lanes getting built, I bike from the west side to downtown all the time and feel pretty comfortable despite not biking much before moving here.
If you ride defensively and are comfortanle on a bike, it's pretty safe. Though I guess compared to what? They've added a ton of bike lanes lately. I don't think anyone is really policing where you lock up. I recently tried the Oonnee Pod at Journal Square and recommend it if that's one of the places you plan to lock up.
I've seen bikes removed from street signs [by the city] so I wouldn't suggest it, but I also overall don't suggest locking things to street signs are they are often "removable" at the base...
regarding safety other users all shared commentary similar to how i feel. on the one hand a lot of delivery people are on e-bikes on the streets every day and reported bike fatalities are not astronomical. on the other hand my experiences with drivers here has been terrible so I could never openly say it's a reasonable method of transportation for the general population
I’ve seen a few cyclists get hit by cars while riding… usually just a “tap” but enough to knock them over and probably cause some damage to their bikes. Drivers have no regard for others downtown it seems, always in a rush.
Count me as part of that demographic! I got hit head on by an old geezer who decided he didn't want to wait his turn to turn onto a cross street, so he went around the guy that was correctly waiting at the intersection and he ran into me head on. My wheel got bent and I got thrown off, though nothing super serious. I have had a driver throw things at me while yelling "get on the sidewalk!" and another deranged maniac get within inches of my back wheel while riding on Grand St because he didn't like being behind a bicycle.
You ever see a bicycle on bicycle crash in town? I've seen 2!
It’s generally safe unless you have a run in with Amy DeGise
>It’s generally safe unless you have a run in with Amy DeGise run a red without even looking in the correct direction.
Hi Amy
Try again. ADG being a low life and running from an accident doesn't mean that the cyclist wasn't a complete asshole too. He bears the whole responsibility for being hit. What happened after is a different story. Had she stopped there'd be nothing to talk about.
Never mentioned the cyclist. He’s a fucking idiot. Someone who runs from the scene of an accident while also serving on city council is a joke.
Yet you blamed her for the accident in your little joke. Every time someone does that they muddy the waters and give her advantage by creating for her the opportunity to tell the half-truth that she did nothing wrong.
It also feeds the meme that cyclists and pedestrians can do no wrong. I just had to dodge a young man pedaling up the sidewalk of my bike lane striped street with his nose buried in his phone.
Yet you blamed her for the accident in your little joke. Every time someone does that they muddy the waters and give her advantage by creating for her the opportunity to tell the half-truth that she did nothing wrong.
Depends where you are riding.
Never had anything serious happening to me. Some close calls, yes.
Get a nice lock (no cable locks).
I bought and always serviced my bike at Grove Street Bicycles on Columbus Dr. Can't go wrong with them.
moobycow t1_j13gltz wrote
It really depends on where you are going and your comfort level. I would say that if you are asking the question, the answer for you is probably no.
We don't have a very good network of connected protected bike lanes, and some roads that are vital to get from one place to another are not at all safe.
But, there are routes that are protected and other roads that are pretty safe, so if you happen to be able to use those it can be pretty great.
I don't know if there are laws about locking to street signs, given the number of bikes I see locked to street signs probably not.
I use Grove St Bicycles.