Cycling in Staten Island

The recently painted white chevron and bike symbols that have cropped up along Staten Island's Bay Street have left drivers and cyclists alike scratching their heads and wondering what, exactly, they are supposed to mean. The city calls them "shared lanes," and they're designed for narrow streets that don't have enough room for a lane dedicated to bikes only. The painted markings are meant to increase awareness among drivers that cyclists are also using the busy road.

St. George attorney and avid cyclist John Luisi, a one-time hopeful to unseat Borough President James Molinaro, said it's nice to know the city is taking the needs of riders more seriously, but he questioned the propriety of the new Bay Street configuration. "There is a need, but there's definitely a better way to do it," Luisi said.

The Bay Street markings seem almost designed to create conflict, Luisi said, calling the forced faceoff between cyclist and motorist "counterproductive."