TD Five Boro Bike Tour: Where to watch it in Brooklyn

Brooklyn’s streets will be filled with thousands of bicyclists this Sunday as the world’s most popular bike ride, the TD Five Boro Bike Tour is back at full strength. Delayed and limited to 20,000 participants last year due to COVID-19, this year the sold-out event includes more than 32,000 cyclists, who will bike 40 miles across all five boroughs.

The event begins in Lower Manhattan, swings through the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn, and winds up in Staten Island. The Brooklyn leg passes through multiple neighborhoods from Greenpoint through Williamsburg and DUMBO and along the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) to Bay Ridge, with plenty of great viewing areas along the way. (See map below.) Best of all for bikers, the entire route is car-free. 

There are multiple rest areas with snacks and repair stations set up along the route. There are also several departure spots for those who only want to bike part of the route (such as families with children), including one at mile 27 near the Brooklyn Bridge.

This year, there’s a new twist: Since NYC traffic law has changed, bikers may now use a pedal-assist e-bike. 

Mayor Eric Adams, known to be a bike enthusiast, touted the event. “Cycling is a great way to get around, stay healthy, and take care of our environment, and I’m so excited the TD Five Boro Bike Tour is getting back to full strength,” he said.

“We’re back and better than ever,” said Ken Podziba, CEO and President of the nonprofit Bike New York, which sponsors the tour along with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT). “And knowing the proceeds from the Tour fund Bike New York’s free bike education and safety programs makes it even more meaningful.” 

Proceeds from the event fund free public bike education programs for more than 30,000 adults and kids, along with projects like Recycle-A-Bicycle and charities such as One Community, which prepares formerly incarcerated New Yorkers for union jobs repairing Citi Bikes.

The tour kicks off with the first wave of riders leaving at 7:30 a.m., rain or shine. The sixth and final wave takes off at 10:25 a.m. It ends with a Finish Festival at Empire Outlets on Staten Island’s North Shore, next to the Staten Island Ferry. Medals will be handed out to all finishers. Even if you don’t ride, you can attend the after-party.

Major street closures are scheduled to include the FDR Drive, BQE/Gowanus Expressway, as well as the Ed Koch-Queensboro and Verrazzano-Narrows Bridges. (DOT strongly advises motorists to take mass transit or to seek alternative routes farther from the ride route.)

Brooklyn Route:

– McGuiness Boulevard between Pulaski Bridge and GreenpointAvenue

– Java Street between McGuiness Boulevard and Franklin Street 

– Greenpoint Avenue between McGuiness Boulevard and Franklin Street

– Franklin Street between Java Street and North 14th Street

– Kent Avenue between North 14th Street and Williamsburg Street West

– Williamsburg Street West between Kent Avenue and Flushing Avenue

– Flushing Avenue between Williamsburg Street West and Navy Street

– North Elliot Place between Flushing Avenue and Park Avenue

– Navy Street between Flushing Avenue and York Street

– York Street between Navy Street and Gold Street

– Gold Street between York Street and Front Street

– Front Street between Gold Street and Old Fulton Street

– Old Fulton Street between Furman Street and Prospect Street

– Cadman Plaza West between Prospect Street and Tillary Street

– Tillary Street between Cadman Plaza West and Adams Street

– Brooklyn Bridge Promenade between Tillary Street and Centre Street

– Furman Street between Old Fulton Street and Atlantic Avenue

– Atlantic Avenue between Furman Street and Columbia Street

– Columbia Street between Atlantic Avenue and BQE West Entrance Columbia Street

– BQE/Gowanus Expressway between BQE West Entrance Columbia Street andVerrazano 

– Verrazano Bridge Lower Level (Staten Island – bound)