Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about Car-Free Parks

Prospect Park’s West Drive Is Now Permanently Car-Free

By Stephen Miller | Jul 6, 2015 | 25 Comments

A week after Central Park went mostly car-free, today marked the beginning of the permanent car-free zone on the west side of Prospect Park [PDF]. Leading up to today, the traffic shortcuts through Prospect Park had been gradually winnowed down to one lane on the west side during the evening rush and one lane on the […]

Central Park Above 72nd Street Is Now Car-Free Forever

By Stephen Miller | Jun 29, 2015 | 35 Comments

Last week, people walking and biking on the Central Park loop had to worry about taxi drivers and car commuters motoring through the park as a rush hour shortcut. This morning was different: Above 72nd Street, you could ride your bike, walk your dog, or go for a run on a safer, quieter path with a lot […]

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Watch 18 Years of Car-Free Parks Advocacy and Progress in NYC

By Clarence Eckerson Jr. | Jun 19, 2015 | No Comments

The exciting news about the big expansion of car-free zones in Central Park and Prospect Park is a milestone in a very long campaign. The movement for car-free parks goes back nearly 50 years — much farther than the videos I’ve posted here. But it wasn’t that long ago that car-free hours in these parks were the exception, rather than the […]

De Blasio Gets More Cars Out of Central Park and Prospect Park

By Ben Fried | Jun 18, 2015 | 23 Comments

Starting in a few weeks, people will be able to enjoy the Central Park loop north of 72nd Street and the west side of Prospect Park year-round without having to worry about motor vehicle traffic, Mayor de Blasio and Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg announced this morning. The changes will significantly reduce motor vehicle traffic in both parks while stopping short of […]

Car-Free Parks: The Anticipation Builds

By Brad Aaron | May 22, 2015 | 22 Comments

When City Council members Mark Levine and Helen Rosenthal withdrew a bill that would have made the entire Central Park loop car-free for three summer months, the assumption was that City Hall was preparing to lead on the issue. “The council members have been working with the administration on this, and things are moving forward outside of the legislative process,” […]

Will City Hall and DOT Finally Commit to Car-Free Parks This Summer?

By Stephen Miller | Apr 21, 2015 | 12 Comments

Spring is here, and that means the loops in Central Park and Prospect Park are increasingly crowded, with cyclists, joggers, and walkers squeezed by rush-hour traffic. Will the de Blasio administration finally make the parks car-free this summer? Last year, DOT repeated the same partially car-free regime in Central Park that the Bloomberg administration introduced in 2013. While the loop north of […]

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