On Demand
Car-Free
Times Square and Herald Square are officially closed to motor vehicles. As of yesterday, two sections of Broadway, between 47th and 42nd streets and between 33rd and 35th streets, are now pedestrian malls, and to talk about how it's going so far in Times Square is Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance.
We want to hear from you too. What do you think of the car-free Times Square and Herald Square? Give us a call or comment below!
- About the Brian Lehrer Show »
- Staff Bios »
- Contact Us »
- Tapes and Transcripts »
- Latest Episode »
- Show Archive »
Features & Series
Podcast
Stay up to date.
Subscribe to the Podcast
YOU PRODUCE The Brian Lehrer Show
Be a listener-producer with facts, questions and people you'd like to hear on the air.
More
The Brian Lehrer Show Scrapbook
Visit the scrapbook for daily photos and miscellany from The Brian Lehrer Show.
More
Shop at Amazon!
The Brian Lehrer Show picks
Start your Amazon shopping on WNYC.org and a portion of your total purchase goes to WNYC.
More
Comments
Refresh
It's about time! No cars = more room for people, bikes, walking, kissing, exploring. No cars = less noise, less threat to innocent human life. A car is a 3000+ lb tank racing around trying to kill you. A human and a lawn chair pose no threat to anyone, but rather evoke a sense of peace and serenity in a city of chaos and turmoil. Being able to relax in an otherwise preposterously-busy place is a wonderful paradox. I hope all of Broadway goes car free!
New York City is not a European city. Times Square is the center of the universe, it is inconceivable of denying the public buses access.
Disabled people rely on the public buses to get around. Public buses should be allowed access just like the European cities.
Mayor Bloomberg should allow the NYCTA buses to traverse at Times Square.
Several points:
It is WAY too early to tell as yesterday was an extraordinarily quiet traffic day.
Let's talk about Times Square as a specific, not as a general concept. More people? Hard to imagine NYC visitors having stayed away previously now being attracted to the area because of the pedestrian conversion.
Kind of sad that the lawn chairs were being folded up at 8pm last night on a beautiful evening. The city that never sleeps, right? Let's work on that.
Pedestrians are going to be the key to this being successful. If Walk/Don't Walk signals are going to be ignored (as usual) then traffic will be backed up along Broadway etc especially during TKTS/theater/evening rush hour. Let's think about who's going to be upset about that and match it to Bloomberg's donor base. (Hint: we're not talking about cycling activists)
One other thing, wouldn't Times Square be great for all those folks relaxing on Broadway if there was a PUBLIC RESTROOM available? Times Square to Bryant Park is quite a hike when you gotta go.
In Bogotá, Colombia, the city closes 7th Avenue to car traffic on Sundays. This is called a "Ciclovia". 7th Avenue is a main avenue that nearly stretches across the entire city. This is a great day to be in Bogotá because one can walk, or cycle, or jog, or roller blade, or stroller, etc. without interuption. The car free zone passes markets, parks, and many fun outdoor activities.
On another note, Colombia also has HOV lanes in some cities that stay open past 10 a.m.!!
Being both a pedestrian AND driver in the area, I've found the experiment idiotic & typical of emperor Iceberg's power craze .
"Give em an inch and they'll take a mile"--and that's all the pedestrians will do.
I am not against the "pedestrian malls" that were opened this weekend. I am against the fact that the NYCDOT decided to discontinue the M6 bus. This is the *only* bus that transported NYC residents and tourists from Lower Manhattan to Midtown. My question is, why didn't the NYCDOT just reroute the bus to 7th Ave (as they did with the other bus lines) or terminate the M6 at 31st Street? Discontinuing the M6 was a poorly thought out decision and one that I hope is soon reconsidered.
I can't wait til they have tables and chairs out; Harold Square is always packed at lunchtime, so hopefully this will take off some of the pressure to find a seat!
Perhaps in the future the DOT will build a raised bike lane through the zone with clear marking to keep both pedestrians and bicyclists safe.
Positive effect is more walking space on sidewalks.
Times Square gawkers etc. do not crowd serious
walkers who are 'going someplace'! and don't forget
the possibility of having a place to sit for a minute
i stopped by at lunch. i'll say it's better than no thing but we have far to go. drivers need to learn how to share the city.
Leave a Comment
Please stay on topic, be civil, and be brief.
Back to EpisodeEmail addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. Names are displayed with all comments. WNYC reserves the right to edit any comments posted on this site. Please read the WNYC.org Comment Guidelines before posting.