A Bicycle Trail Runs Through It

Last night at the Common Council Public Works and Parks Committee meeting, DPW superintendent Rob Perry revealed the route being proposed for the Empire State Trail through Hudson. The Empire State Trail is Governor Andrew Cuomo's plan to "enhance outdoor recreation, community vitality, and tourism development" by creating a continuous 750-mile route, for bicyclists and hikers, from New York City to the Canadian border and from Albany to Buffalo.

Coming from the north, the trail enters Hudson on Henry Howard Avenue and then follows the Dugway to Mill Street and Charles Williams Park. It continues on Mill Street to Dock Street and then goes south along Front Street to Allen Street. The route then goes up Allen Street to Third Street, where it turns right and exits Hudson on Route 9G to the soon-to-be-constructed roundabout at the intersection of Route 9G and Route 23.

The original route through Hudson proposed by the Empire State Trail people involved Warren Street, and there was talk of moving the parking lane on one side of the street to create a bicycle lane along the curb, as has been done in various places in New York City. Fortunately, that idea was abandoned, and so was the possibility of eliminating parking on one side of Allen Street to create a bike lane. Gossips has been told that no onstreet parking will be sacrificed along the route of the trail through our city. 

In anticipation of the trail coming through our streets, those of us who live and park on the affected blocks of Allen Street may want to start practicing what is called in Europe the "Dutch Reach," to avoid "dooring" cyclists when exiting our cars. The poster below, created by a group called the Dutch Reach Project, outlines how it's done. There's even a video on YouTube to teach the Dutch Reach.

Image: dutchreach.org

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