Advocates gather at City Hall to push for protected bike lanes in Philly

Bike safety advocates, families of crash victims and other concerned residents gathered in Center City Thursday afternoon to demand the installation of protected bike lanes throughout Philadelphia.

The demonstration – organized by the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, Philly Bike Action, Families for Safe Streets Greater Philadelphia, and other groups – took place outside of City Hall around 4 p.m.

The groups planned to present nearly 10,000 petition signatures to Mayor Cherelle Parker and Council President Kenyatta Johnson demanding that the city install permanent protection for every bike lane in Philadelphia and implement safety improvements for bicyclists. They also held up signs which showed the message, "Concrete Now!"

While the protesters wanted permanent protection installed for every bike lane in Philadelphia, they focused specifically on Spruce and Pine streets along with Allegheny Avenue.

"We are specifically asking for concrete protected bike lanes," Nicole Brunet of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia said. "All through the city there is close to 30 miles of what the city calls 'high quality bike lanes' that don't all have concrete protection. So we want to see those upgraded. We also want to see it made illegal to park in bike lanes."

The protesters also asked for an increase in funding for the Vision Zero initiative, a city program that aims to eliminate all traffic deaths in Philadelphia.

The rally occurred nearly a month after Dr. Barbara Friedes – who was recently named a chief resident at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia – was struck and killed by a driver while she was riding her bike in Center City.

Police said the 30-year-old doctor was wearing a helmet and riding in a designated bike lane back on July 17 when she was struck by the driver of a blue 2018 Volkswagen who was traveling at a high rate of speed westbound along the 1800 block of Spruce Street.

After hitting Friedes, the Volkswagen continued on to strike a parked 2019 Nissan, a 2018 Toyota and a 2019 Lexus that were all legally parked on the street, officials said.

The driver of the Volkswagen – later identified as 69-year-old Michael Vahey -- was later charged with homicide by vehicle while DUI, homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol, recklessly endangering another person, reckless driving and exceeding the speed limit.

In a statement, Friedes’ parents, John and Mary Dietrick, noted that it was Vahey’s second DUI arrest. They said he had previously been convicted in 2009 after driving the wrong way along Pine Street at 10^th Street in Philadelphia.

“The fact that this is Michael Vahey’s second DUI, and he was back on the streets of Philadelphia drinking and driving at twice the legal limit is simply unacceptable,” they wrote. “The fact that Barbara lost her life to a drunk driver operating a motor vehicle at twice the legal limit for a second time is even more despicable.”

According to the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, Friedes was the first person to be killed while riding a bicycle in Philadelphia in 2024. Another victim, Christopher Cabrera, was struck and killed while riding a bike in Kensington, also on July 17.

The coalition said there was a record number of reported bicyclist deaths in Philadelphia in 2023 with 10 people killed.

“Not only are these tragic deaths unacceptable, they were preventable,” Chris Gale, Executive Director of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, said. "She was doing everything right. She still lost her life because there wasn’t enough infrastructure, concrete barriers. There wasn’t a way to really, really protect her in the road."

Thursday's demonstration was the second protest from bike safety advocates in Philadelphia in less than a month.

Back on July 26, hundreds of bicyclists gathered at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and rode through several neighborhoods before stopping at City Hall to protest the deaths of Friedes and Cabrera.

The organizers for that protest also said they wanted concrete barriers and a ban on parking in the bike lanes.

In response to the July 26 protest, a spokesperson for Mayor Parker told NBC10 that she was a major advocate for speed cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard and Broad Street.

"The crash that caused Dr. Friedes' death was a terrible tragedy, and the mayor noted on air that she learned of the criminal charges filed against the driver of the car shortly before the program aired. We commend the work of Philadelphia police and District Attorney Krasner on the case. Several other pedestrians were killed by cars in recent days; police investigations are ongoing. Every pedestrian, bicyclist or motorist death in a crash is a tragedy; we mourn every loss," the spokesperson said in a statement.

NBC10 reached out to Mayor Parker's office for comment on Thursday's rally. A spokesperson sent the following statement:

Mayor Parker, her leadership team, the Streets Department and the Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Services (OTIS) look forward to reviewing the petitions that will be delivered today and taking into consideration the thoughts and considerations of all of the Philadelphians who signed the petition. These will help guide the administration as we continue to work with City Council, the Philadelphia Parking Authority, affected houses of worship, and community members to find an action plan that improves safety on our city streets for pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorists.     

Since day one, the Parker Administration has stressed its vision of creating a safer, cleaner, and greener Philadelphia. Fostering safety in all forms – including traffic safety – is something Mayor Paker cares about strongly and has advocated for since her days in the State Legislature and City Council.   

Every life lost or maimed in an incident of roadway crashes matters to Mayor Parker. We’ll examine every possible solution and action to make Philadelphia safer. 

OTIS is currently in the planning stages for near- and long-term solutions for improving traffic safety on the Spruce/Pine Streets’ corridor and working with City Council on actionable solutions. We are encouraged by this progress. 

These solutions include a mix of curbside policy changes that could be implemented in the near term and physical infrastructure upgrades which would require more time to design and build. In June, to help prevent the need for residents and delivery vehicles to stop in bike lanes, the City installed new loading zones on each block of the Spruce/Pine Streets’ corridor west of Broad Street.  

In addition to the Spruce/Pine Streets’ corridor, we are taking note of the citywide conversation on traffic safety.  Advocacy is important so we can factor in the concerns and suggestions brought forward by residents and organized groups. The Mayor’s Office and City departments continue to field calls and gathering information from other sources of outreach throughout this process. 

For additional information on City’s bicycle network, please visit the Philadelphia Bicycle Network Changes interactive story map which was published in May.