Brooklyn’s Bergen and Dean Streets Are Getting Bike Boulevards

Two of Brooklyn’s most important east-west cycling corridors are about to get a major overhaul. Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYC DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn announced on May 6 that the city will redesign Bergen Street and Dean Street — from Court Street all the way to East New York Avenue — as bike boulevards. The 10-mile paired routes carry thousands of cyclists, commuters, and children biking to school every day, and they’re finally going to be designed to match that reality.

The announcement came on National Bike and Roll to School Day, when Mamdani rode alongside students and families from the Bergen Bike Bus — a weekly caravan of parents and kids who travel together because the existing infrastructure makes solo riding feel unsafe. Now, the infrastructure is going to change.

What a Bike Boulevard Actually Means

A bike boulevard isn’t a simple painted lane. It’s a street redesign that prioritizes cyclists and pedestrians while keeping local vehicle access intact. Depending on the block, the work can include protected bike lanes, sidewalk extensions, medians, traffic-calming measures, and pedestrian improvements. The goal is to make the streets feel safe for riders of all ages — including kids who currently rely on a group of adult escorts just to get to school.

According to the Mayor’s Office, protected bike lanes have been shown to reduce deaths and serious injuries for all road users by 18.1% and for pedestrians by 29.2%. The Bergen and Dean redesign will be built around those outcomes.

Who Uses These Streets

Bergen and Dean run parallel through some of Brooklyn’s most densely populated and cycling-active neighborhoods: Carroll Gardens, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, and Brownsville, before reaching East New York. The Bergen Bike Bus alone draws dozens of families every Wednesday. Alongside them, regular commuters have been using these corridors as de facto bike routes for years, despite painted lanes that offer minimal actual protection.

“Streets that are the envy of the world are safe for people of all ages and abilities,” Commissioner Flynn said in the announcement. “With the right street design, more students can feel safe and empowered to bike to school without the requirement of a large caravan of parents to protect them.”

The redesign is being coordinated with several other major Brooklyn planning efforts already in motion: the Atlantic Avenue Mixed Use Plan, the Flatbush Avenue busway, the Grand Army Plaza-Prospect Heights Public Realm Plan, and the MTA’s Brooklyn Bus Network Redesign. In other words, Bergen and Dean aren’t being treated as isolated bike projects — they’re part of a larger rethinking of how central Brooklyn moves.

Timeline and Community Input

The project is in its early planning stages. DOT has launched an online public engagement portal at nycdotprojects.info/project/dean-bergen-bike-boulevard-project where Brooklynites can submit feedback now. The agency plans to release a design proposal later in 2026, with the first phase of construction targeted for 2027.

Community Board leaders, elected officials from Assembly Members Robert Carroll, Phara Souffrant Forrest, and Latrice Walker to Council Members Shahana Hanif, Sandy Nurse, Chi Ossé, and Lincoln Restler all voiced support at the announcement. Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso called it “a major win for our borough.”

There has been some neighborhood pushback, particularly from residents concerned about parking and local traffic changes. DOT’s engagement portal is the place to make those concerns heard before the design is finalized.

What You Need to Know

What: Bike boulevard redesign for Bergen Street and Dean Street from Court Street to East New York Avenue — 10 miles total.
What’s included: Varies by block; may include protected bike lanes, sidewalk extensions, medians, and traffic-calming measures.
Timeline: Design proposal coming later in 2026; first phase of construction targeted for 2027.
How to give input: DOT’s online feedback portal is live at nycdotprojects.info/project/dean-bergen-bike-boulevard-project.
Announced by: Mayor Mamdani and DOT Commissioner Flynn, May 6, 2026, on National Bike and Roll to School Day.
Source: NYC Mayor’s Office press release, nyc.gov.

Bergen and Dean are already two of the borough’s most-used cycling routes — this redesign is about catching the infrastructure up to how Brooklynites are already moving. For more on Brooklyn’s parks and public spaces, see the HelpNewYork Prospect Park guide. And for guidance on navigating the city by bike, check the NYC bike and micromobility guide.