T: Is for Traffic Stopped

It's official, this past Sunday, the unthinkable happened: Broadway officially closed… to cars that is. As part of Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to reduce traffic in the city, two sections of Broadway, from 47th to 42nd and from 35th to 33rd Streets, were closed to all vehicular traffic. Set into motion as part of the Green Light for Midtown plan developed by the Bloomberg Administration. The goal is to reduce congestion by closing down sections where traffic meets tricky intersections. The hope is that by doing so, flow will be improved. Ready for this? The real change may happen soon after. If the city judges the closure of these sections a success, it is prepared to go even further and close the entire boulevard to vehicular access. The city plans on creating a truly pedestrian friendly walkway in the heart of the Manhattan theatre district. It will effectively become the biggest change to the makeup of the city, an urban companion to New York’s Central Park. There is a problem here, it is impossible to get downtown by bus now if you live on the West Side. I did it yesterday and what normally took 20 minutes now takes 45. I ride my bike and the pedestrians are in a word...rude, even though you are in a bike lane that means nothing in this city (see tomorrows column). Businesses don't want this. The people in the community don't want it. Who does....the tourist. Could this be a step in causing Mayor Bloomberg the election? There are other ways to make the city green, accessible and for the people who live here. Why does no one take this into consideration? Maybe if someone promised this in their election speeches the city would vote for them and that is a check mark of a F.A.C.T.