Been riding uptown on 2nd for years, mostly to get to work in the 90s. The new flex posts went in around the 60s–80s stretch and I swear the lane feels more like a slalom course now. In the morning you get NYPD or ConEd parked on the plastic sticks, then the delivery guys cut the wrong way to get around them, then the taxi picks someone up right in the green paint. Are the posts actually keeping anybody out, or are we just paying for decorative lane furniture? Curious if anyone else does this stretch regular and feels safer since they went in.

Flex posts are basically vertical paint. Drivers treat them like they're not there once they realize they can just run them over. I ride 1st Ave more than 2nd, even though the bus lane has its own chaos, because the turning traffic isn't as bad in the morning. 2nd Ave is fine after 10am but 8:30am is a mess. Protect the intersections and I'll believe it.

Okay dumb question from a new rider: are the flex posts those white plastic sticks that look like they can bend? I used the 2nd Ave lane for the first time Tuesday and didn't realize you're supposed to stay between them and the curb. I kept drifting out because a truck was halfway in the lane. Is it okay to just go around them into the car lane? I didn't get hit but I felt like I was breaking some rule.

firstwinter don't overthink it. The lane is where the green paint is, but when it's blocked you can take the car lane. Just signal and check your shoulder. The flex posts don't mean you're trapped.

The real problem westside is that the posts stop at intersections, which is exactly where right hooks happen. I'd rather have a solid concrete curb at the corners and no posts mid-block than this reverse setup. 2nd Ave from the tunnel up to 86th has a bunch of cross streets where drivers treat the green as a turn lane.

Gowanus_G is right about the corners. I almost got right-hooked at 79th last week by an SUV that never touched its turn signal. The post didn't do anything because the driver was already inside the lane before the turn.

walt, I've done 1st Ave too but the M15 bus lane plus the construction by the Q entrance can be even less fun. At least on 2nd the cars are honest about blocking you.

Honest? Maybe. But honest doesn't help when a livery car is sitting in the lane with his hazards on while a garbage truck is coming up behind you. Same vibe as the rear-door bus stuff—Rear-door boarding on local buses: is OMNY turning every route into SBS-lite?—people see the infrastructure and just treat the whole thing as optional. On 2nd I stopped ringing the bell. It just scares pedestrians, and the driver blocking the lane already knows. I'll give a quick shout if someone's drifting into me, but mostly I just take the car lane early and let the horn-honking happen behind me.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I tried it again today around 2pm and it was much easier. I stayed in the car lane to pass a FedEx truck and nobody honked. One thing I don't get: when a car is waiting to turn left across the lane, do you pass on the right or wait? The driver looked at me like I was invisible, so I just stopped and let him go. Is that wrong?

firstwinter stopping is fine. If the car is actually turning left across you, don't pass on the right unless you're 100% sure they see you and you have space. That's one of the main ways people get hit on 2nd Ave. If they wave you through, still check the next lane. A lot of these left-turn drivers are watching for cars, not bikes. Pass on the left with a full lane only if it's clear and you're not cutting off moving traffic.

Yep, the left-turn wave-through is a trap. I usually shake my head and wait. Saves maybe five seconds to go for it and a lot more if you guess wrong. Glad the midday ride was better, firstwinter. Early morning and after 4pm is where it gets spicy.