Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about Car-Free Parks

Rumor Mill: City Collecting Data for Car-Free Central Park?

By Brad Aaron | Jul 20, 2011 | 2 Comments

Central Park advocate Ken Coughlin tells us he’s spotted a traffic counting strip on the park loop, near Tavern on the Green. The theory is that the city is gathering traffic data this summer as a baseline for a car-free park trial next year. That would jibe with recent remarks from Mayor Bloomberg and references […]

The Times Invites Drivers to Take a Spin Through the Central Park Loop

By Ben Fried | Jul 15, 2011 | 17 Comments

Say what you will about yesterday’s Corey Kilgannon piece extolling the “guilty pleasure” of driving on the Central Park loop, it’s refreshing to see the New York Times veil of objectivity stripped away, revealing the naked windshield perspective beneath. I mean, here it is, raw and unfiltered. Driving on city streets is miserable (“the doldrums […]

DOT: “No Plans at This Time” for Car-Free Central Park Trial

By Noah Kazis | Jul 1, 2011 | 14 Comments

The July 4 weekend is upon us and with it, the height of summer. If Manhattan’s community boards had their way, summertime would mean a trial closure of Central Park’s loop drive to cars. A resolution to try out such a closure from “the summer months through Labor Day” earned the support of Community Boards […]

Community Boards Line Up for Car-Free Central Park. Whither Bloomberg?

By Brad Aaron | Jun 23, 2011 | 9 Comments

By unanimous voice vote, the full board of Manhattan CB 11 has passed a resolution endorsing a summer trial for a car-free Central Park. Says park advocate Ken Coughlin, “We have the agreement of all the boards surrounding the park and are now waiting for a response from DOT on whether they will move ahead […]

Community Board 9 Endorses Car-Free Park Trial, Reverses Committee Vote

By Noah Kazis | Jun 17, 2011 | No Comments

Manhattan Community Board 9 became the latest to endorse a car-free Central Park trial last night. By a vote of 32-9 with five abstentions, the board overwhelmingly overturned the 2-1 vote of its transportation committee, which had been the only committee in the borough not to endorse the plan thus far. CB 9 is the […]

CB 8 Votes For Car-Free Park Trial, Declares All Cyclists Scofflaws

By Ben Fried | Jun 17, 2011 | 24 Comments

Manhattan Community Board 8 voted Wednesday night in favor of a car-free Central Park trial this summer, joining an increasingly long list of community boards in support of the proposal. My unofficial tally of the roll call had the final vote at 36-8 in favor. The car-free park trial has picked up committee votes at […]

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