The City Council approved two transportation measures on Tuesday, one of which will require more community input before streets can be reconfigured, while the other will require reports on street changes within 18 months of their implementation, according to the Gotham Gazette.
In other words, every proposed pedestrian plaza and bike lane will now go through a much more rigorous review and follow-up process.
“The days when the Department of Transportation could unilaterally reconfigure our streetscapes are gone," James Vacca, transportation committee chair, told the Gazette. Vacca sponsored both bills.
The first measure would require a consultation between the DOT and Small Business Services, police and fire departments and other city agencies, before streets can be reconfigured. The Council and local community boards would also be involved in the planning process.
The second measure will require the DOT to provide reports on street changes within 18 months, which will include statistics on traffic, accidents and emergency vehicle response times.
Will all of these extra steps slow the implementation of initiatives to make New York City’s streets friendlier for pedestrians and bikers? Or will they help to curb problems that have spring up because of poor street planning? The Gazette notes that pedestrian plazas have been hard for the disabled (especially the visually impaired) to navigate, have hurt small businesses and have made routes tougher for emergency response vehicles.
New pedestrian islands and crosswalks have made while also helping the flow of traffic for cars. Residents lauded the changes last month. The DOT also recently redesigned nearby Washington Avenue to makr it .
But in Clinton Hill over the summer, residents like community organizer Schellie Hagan at Putnam Triangle, saying that the plans were “forced” on them “without any proper research.”
Fellow protestors believed that the use of $400,000 of city money for the plaza was “a waste of taxpayer money.”
, between Flatbush and Broadway, hoped to calm traffic earlier this year, but many residents were skeptical that it would help.
“There are traffic-calming needs on Lafayette Avenue,” John Dew, chairman of Community Board 2 told Patch in February. “But we feel that [the city] should look at other alternatives besides just a bike lane.”
Do you think the DOT needs to slow down it’s street re-configuring plans, or has the agency been making New York City’s streets friendlier?
The efficacy of NYCDOT's street reconfigurations is well borne out by the fact that New York City is on track for the lowest number of traffic fatalities in 100 years: http://transportationnation.org/2011/11/30/nyc-on-track-to-have-lowest-traffic-fatalities-in-a-century/
You mean the Queen of the DOT will have to consult the FDNY before she puts one of those ridiculous "neck downs" at the corner of a block where the firehouse is, so the trucks can't make the damn turns? How dare the people have a voice!
The DOT already consults with FDNY and other city agencies about how street changes will affect them and so far the FDNY has been on board with 100% of them. In fact, they have reportedly said that having bike lanes and better flowing traffic allows them easier access to emergencies. Schellie Hagan is a lone, but vocal, crank, who is against ALL pedestrian plazas. Nevertheless, she's been photographed enjoying the plaza in her neighborhood, so she's been exposed as a hypocrite. Why would you cite her here? Is it news that in NYC you're always going to be able to find someone who hates something that most people love? Giacomo's comment is merely confirmation that repeating this lie -- that the DOT needs to be reined in by City Council -- is very harmful to the incredible progress Janette Sadik-Khan and her department have made in their efforts to make our streets safer. Please do some homework next time.
"The administration has come under fire for its use of data to justify its ambitious street changes. When it announced the establishment of a pedestrian mall around Times Square, the said its would improve traffic flow. While the mall has done many things, it has not, by the city's own account, reduced gridlock or increased traffic speeds. The city first tried to keep that data private and then, when it finally was released, sought to dismiss the importance of its numbers."
I mean, it's not like the project originated in the Community Board, had numerous public hearings, got altered at the public's request, was overwhelmingly voted for and went through a trial period, right? Oh, wait...
I live 2 minutes away and walk past every day. It is totally underused and always see the traffic backed up waiting for the buses to turn. I'm not against plazas but this one just seems very poorly planned. Why would something so unnecessary need to be put there when nobody wants it and all you can use it for is waiting for your laundry! Heres the link. http://vimeo.com/user9008027/videos
Tea anyone?
http://vimeo.com/29624357 The people who oppose stuff like this have no good arguments, only fear and ignorance. The neighborhood is safer and better with these kinds of plazas.
You are right. Ped plazas don't make sense everywhere, but this one makes a lot of sense. Opposing THIS one involves fear and ignorance.