Part of Mayor Bill De Blasio's Vision Zero initiative includes an effort to expand the city's bike network, but one Queens business owner claims that the addition of some bike lanes in his neighborhood have taken a bite out of his sales.
Ben's Best Deli located along Queens Boulevard between 63rd Drive and 64th Road in Rego Park has been in Jay Parker's family for nearly three generations.
He said that since the city's Department of Transportation installed protected bike lanes in front of his deli, back in August, that he's seen a nearly 20% loss in his profits.
Parker said that before the addition, that parking in the area was already difficult but that the move also took out about 200 parking spots in the area.
He said he's had to adapt in order to keep his customers happy.
"When it came in we said we would do curbside service. You call your order in, we prepare your order, you give us your credit card over the phone, you call us when you are on the block, you come through, we walk right outside and we hand you your package," said Jay Parker, the owner of Ben’s Best Deli.
Ben's Best Deli also offers to pay for the first hour of parking at a nearby lot as another incentive to keep customers coming in.
In response to Parker's statements, an NYC DOT spokesperson said in part that "DOT’s Street Ambassadors engaged 89 businesses early in the planning process to learn more about individual business operations to inform how we moved forward with the project".