Numbers help support arguments.  Strong numbers help determine policy.  This is the first in a series of  posts to document statistics regarding cycling, its infrastructure and safety.

In a greeting to the Tour de Brooklyn riders on June 4, 2007, New York Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Kahn commented that the Williamsburg Bridge is the most popular bridge in the city with 2,600 riders crossing every day.

See Streetsblog.org to review the transcript of Ms. Janette Sadik-Kahn’s address to the crowd [copied below]:

Thanks Noah.

Good morning. As Noah mentioned, I was recently appointed transportation commissioner by Mayor Bloomberg. And I want to thank Transportation Alternatives for organizing this terrific event. And want to welcome you to the 2007 Tour de Brooklyn. When I was coming over here, I thought it was interesting, when I was on the other side of the bridge, it was called the Tour de Brooklyn, when I got over to Brooklyn, it was called the Tour duh Brooklyn.

But this is a great opportunity for recreation and it’s great to see you all out here. Cycling is also the backbone of our city’s transportation network. And we need to do more to find ways to build out our transportation infrastructure to include biking. And that’s what we want to change.

The Brooklyn cycling network continues to evolve, and we really want to do everything we can to make that happen. Brooklyn could certainly be called the bicycling borough. Downtown Brooklyn has been a focal point of our investments. And if you consider the huge investments that we’ve made to date on the East River bridges alone, I think it’s some serious cycling infrastructure and I think it’s the envy of many riders from across the country. And if you’re from the northern borough – the northern part of Brooklyn, and you use the Williamsburg Bridge, congratulations: That’s the most popular bridge in the city today, with 2,600 riders crossing this bridge every day.

And moving forward, we’re going to dramatically increase this with Mayor Bloomberg’s sustainability program, we’re going to continue to invest in better connections to the biking network. Make better intermodal connections to our transit stations, and do everything we can to improve the quality of life for bikers in this city. So thank you so much. None of this could happen with out you.

I look forward to your support as we move forward to improve transportation and the biking network in New York City. So, on to the road.