Been doing the Queensboro to East 90s run for five years, and I recently made an effort to compare 1st vs 2nd above 59th properly instead of just falling into one route. My assumption had been that 1st’s protected lane would be calmer and faster because you’re separated from the worst of the traffic. In practice, the stretch from 59th to 72nd has been a slow-motion obstacle course: food delivery bikes going the wrong way, hospital transport vans half in the lane around 68th, pedestrians crossing mid-block between parked cars, and at least one rideshare backing out of a service road without looking.

Above 72nd, 1st does open up for a while, but then you get the commercial loading around 79th and the construction staging near 86th that pushes you oddly close to turning trucks. I timed the segment from the bridge exit to 96th on a few mornings, and 2nd was often more consistent even though it feels less protected. I know some of that is light timing and some is just luck with trucks.

What are other people doing for this northbound trip? Do you stick with 1st because it’s physically separated, or do you switch to 2nd after a certain block? Is there a specific crossover point that works better than forcing the right turn at 72nd? Also curious whether anyone finds the sections above 90th to be safer now that the new curb extensions are in place, because my memory of 1st up there is that the lane kind of fades into a loading patch.

1st above 72nd is a trap, especially north of 79th. The lane is fine for a block or two, but the commercial loading hits different depending on what day the film shoots are in. I do 2nd most mornings, even though the 79th Street pickup/dropoff zone by the school is a mess. At least on 2nd I can see the double-parkers earlier.

Unpopular opinion but I don't think either lane is reliably faster between 59th and 96th. The bottleneck isn't the lane design, it's the intersections — 68th, 72nd, 79th, 86th — and the same drivers are blocking both. You can't micro-optimize around a box truck that decides to park in the only travel lane. I would just take the route that has better daylighting and fewer blind curb cuts. For me that's 2nd, but it's not a speed thing.

I used to live off York in the 80s, and I commuted to the mid-50s. 1st was the move at 7:30am, but only if you treat it like a slow rail: hold the lane, don't weave, and expect someone to stand in it near 72nd. Later than 8:30, it's a sidewalk extension. 2nd is more predictable. Also, the hill is the hill on either one.

Okay, new here. I've been trying both from 96th down to 42nd. Why do cars sit in the green painted box at 85th and 1st? Is that not for bikes? Also on 2nd, the cars do the same at 68th. I ended up going around them and then a bus honked at me. Do I have to wait, or is that normal?

bronx_newbie, the green boxes are bike boxes but they're just aspirational at this point. The 85th and 1st one is a joke! The crosswalk island pushes you right into the turning cars. If you're on 1st, check out the new curb cut bypass at 88th — that part is actually nice now. But the drainage grates between 72nd and 79th are horrible if you're on skinny tires. I would rather take 2nd just for the pavement, even if the bus bulbs stink!

Good points all around. bronx_newbie, you're not doing anything wrong — the green boxes are supposed to give bikes a head start, but in practice they're only enforced on Twitter. If you're not comfortable taking the lane to go around, hold back and let the turning car make their move; do not squeeze between a bus and the island at 68th.

To answer NoHoContrarian, I think there is a marginal difference after 8:45 because 2nd has more school and drop-off activity on the west side of the street, but it only matters if you're comfortable riding outside the protected lane for a block or two. My current rule for east 90s is 1st if I'm running early and want less stress, 2nd if I actually need to make a meeting. For west of 3rd, 2nd is the obvious choice because the crosstown transfer at 72nd on 1st is miserable. The best crossover is probably 79th or 86th, not 72nd. Above 90th, the lane on 1st used to fade into a service lane south of 96th; the new curb extensions have shifted where cars park, but it's still not a real continuous lane.

astoria_arch, my point stands: if you're on 1st at 72nd and it's blocked, the question isn't whether 2nd is better, it's why the city still lets loading take priority over the only protected northbound route. I know that's an infrastructure gripe, not a riding tip. But all this block-by-block optimization makes cycling feel like a game of memory. I'd rather use 2nd and save the mental bandwidth.

From 96th, I don't even bother with 1st below 86th. Too many garage exits and the around-72nd hospital traffic spills left. 2nd all the way up and down. The only time I use 1st is if I'm headed toward the Carl Schurz area, then I'll take 1st to 86th and cut over. For pure speed, it's 2nd.

Thanks for the tips. I tried 1st this morning from 96th to 59th. The 80s were okay but at 71st a food cart was parked basically in the lane and a delivery guy was coming at me the wrong way. I felt like I was riding through a video game. Then I bailed to York Avenue for a few blocks? It was calmer, but I'm not sure if bikes are allowed there or if drivers just tolerate us. Am I going to get a ticket for using York?

York is the secret route, don't let the transplants know. Above 79th it's mostly fine, but watch the livery cabs around 86th and the garage at 90th. They won't see you. I do York in the morning, and 1st coming back because the lights move better. You won't get a ticket on York, but you'll get a dirty look if you filter past stopped cars too fast.

York between 79th and 86th just got milled! There is a utility cut with a steel plate right in the bike line at 82nd, and the new daylighting at 91st means cars park even closer to the corner. But if you time the lights at 86th and 88th it is weirdly good. Have you tried the left turn from 92nd onto York? The signal doesn't detect bikes, so you wait forever unless a car pulls behind you. That is my pet peeve!

After reading all this I timed my own ride this morning. 2nd was maybe four minutes slower than 1st, but I didn't have to dodge a TLC plate and a hand truck. I'll take the slower route. Sometimes the 'faster' lane is just more adrenaline.