Mamdani's DOT blames Adams for falling short of Streets Plan targets for bus and bike lane construction | amNewYork

"The plan, which mandates the city add 150 new miles of protected bus lanes and 250 new miles of protected bike lanes between 2022 and this year, was passed by the council in 2019. Council Transportation Committee Chair Shaun Abreu (D-Manhattan), who led the proceeding, said DOT has lagged significantly with respect to bike and bus infrastructure. The numbers for protected bus lanes are almost too low to believe."

"During the hearing, Flynn shared metrics from the DOT's latest report on progress on its Streets Plan. He said the agency added 20.8 new bus lane miles and 18.2 new bike lane miles in 2025. That is up from the 13.5 bus lane miles it added in 2024, but down from the 29.3 bike lane miles it added that year."

"Flynn cited two reasons for the drop-off in bike lane creation when asked by Abreu to explain the drop-off. One is that, to be honest, the implementation of the Streets Plan and the capacity to do that was not, I think, fully prioritized by the previous administration."

During a March 3, 2026 City Council Transportation Committee hearing, DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn acknowledged the agency's failure to meet the 2019 Streets Master Plan requirements, which mandate adding 150 miles of protected bus lanes and 250 miles of protected bike lanes between 2022 and 2026. Flynn attributed the shortfall to insufficient prioritization by the previous Adams administration. In 2025, DOT added 20.8 bus lane miles and 18.2 bike lane miles, representing an increase in bus lanes from 2024 but a decrease in bike lanes. Committee Chair Shaun Abreu criticized the agency's performance, noting that bus lane numbers are critically low while bike lane progress, though better, remains inadequate. Flynn pledged improved performance going forward.

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