27 Crashes Later, Brooklyn Tackles ‘Crashland’

BROOKLYN— Cyclists can now travel in both directions along a protected bike lane on Ashland Place in Downtown Brooklyn, as the City completes the final block of a 5.5-mile protected biking corridor stretching from Sunset Park to DUMBO.

The redesign converts Ashland Place to a one-way street and adds a two-way protected bike lane.

The project also shortens pedestrian crossings and adds traffic signals at an intersection where the signals remained covered for years after construction stopped.

The City began redesigning Ashland Place in 2022.

Work halted before crews could finish the final block, leaving the project incomplete under the previous administration, according to the City.

On Tuesday, crews removed the bags covering the traffic signals and put the completed design into operation.

The completed section closes a gap in a protected route that connects cyclists traveling between Sunset Park, Downtown Brooklyn, the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges, DUMBO and points north.

Ashland Place sits near Atlantic Terminal and Barclays Center, an area where subway, bus, pedestrian and bicycle trips converge.

The project also closes a highly visible gap that had become known locally as “Crashland."

The southernmost block of Ashland Place recorded 27 reported crashes between September 2023 and the end of 2025, injuring nine people, including five cyclists, according to city crash data.

A rider traveling between Sunset Park and DUMBO can now use a continuous protected route rather than encountering a break on Ashland Place.

That connection also links riders to routes toward Manhattan, North Brooklyn and Western Queens.

The City plans additional bike-lane redesigns around Ashland Place, including sections of Fourth Avenue and Lafayette Avenue, according to council member Lincoln Restler.