Mamdani admin wants sweeping powers to OK new bike and bus lanes deepening fight over NYC streets

The Mamdani administration wants to give the Department of Transportation sweeping new power to approve new bike and bus lanes, claiming it’ll speed up such projects by 33% — deepening an already bitter fight over the city’s streets.The Commission on Government Efficiency, or COGE, was set to formally adopt five proposed amendments to the City Charter, which would be put to voters on the November election ballot.One of the proposals, “Question 3,” would get rid of inter-agency consultation requirements that critics — including firefighters, disabled residents and neighborhood coalitions — have used to delay or halt recent bike lane projects.Under the amendment, the DOT would also no longer have to complete community board presentations before beginning construction.The transportation commissioner could declare an “immediate need” and build first.Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office, in a press release detailing the five ballot questions, touted that the proposal would “Speed up street safety projects, including bike lanes, by at least 33%.”New York City has more than 1,316 miles of cycling lanes, including more than 140 miles of on-street protected bike lanes, according to DOT. The agency installed 27.9 miles of new protected bike lanes in fiscal year 2025 and DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn told the City Council in early March that the agency expected to outperform that in 2026, but didn’t give a target. Councilwoman Joann Ariola, a Queens Republican, called the proposed amendment “an extremely dangerous precedent.”“This mayor is truly showing the totalitarian colors that so many of us warned about,” Ariola said. “What he’s doing is effectively using a handpicked charter commission to create a carefully engineered question meant to eliminate a law that he doesn’t agree with.”Ariola sponsored a 2025 law requiring DOT to consult with local firehouses about safety before implementing bike lanes and other major street redesigns...