When a beloved teacher is tragically killed in a hit-and-run accident in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, a grassroots movement emerges to transform a notoriously dangerous four-lane boulevard into a safer, two-lane street with protected bike lanes. While many applaud the proposed change, it also sparks a backlash – led in part by a powerful local business owner. As government support begins to waver, neighbors unite to challenge entrenched interests and fight for a safer Greenpoint. Changing Lanes situates this local struggle within broader historical, environmental, political, and social contexts through interviews with politicians, activists, urban planners, entrepreneurs, and cultural icons including David Byrne and Janette Sadik-Khan – a compelling call to action for democracy at street level.
“Made by a bicyclist, largely filmed from aboard a bicycle, featuring cyclists illustrious and ordinary, Changing Lanes is charged with the energy of urban cycling – New York cycling. Like no other film, Changing Lanes makes clear that bicyclists are the passionate heart of the livable streets movement.”
-Charles Komanoff, Transportation Economist & Environmental Activist
“More than a story about one street, Changing Lanes offers a vivid case study in how grassroots movements take shape: the resistance to change, the grip of the status quo, the messiness of political processes, the wins and setbacks, and the mix of strategy, timing, and luck that ultimately drives – or derails – change in our cities.”
-Marcia Ely, Director of Programs, Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Public Library
“Changing Lanes is more than a film about bikes and public space. It’s about who wields power, what defines a community, and how regular citizens can organize in the face of deep corruption and other seemingly insurmountable obstacles. It is very much a movie made for the political and cultural moment the country finds itself in right now.”
-Doug Gordon, Co-host, The War on Cars podcast
