Bloomberg administration experiments with Broadway

Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration intends to experiment with closing five blocks of Broadway in Midtown Manhattan to vehicular traffic, possibly as early as this May. “Although it seems counterintuitive, officials believe the move will actually improve the overall flow of traffic, because the diagonal path of Broadway tends to disrupt traffic where it intersects with other streets,” The New York Times reported Feb. 25. Broadway is to be closed to traffic from West 42nd Street (near Times Square) to West 47th Street. Traffic would continue to flow through on Seventh Avenue, which runs north-south, and on the east-west cross streets, but Broadway itself would be reserved for pedestrians. The new plan comes on the heels of last year’s narrowing of Broadway from 42nd to 35th Street; two lanes were converted to a bike lane and a promenade with tables, chairs, and planters. Officials are considering creating a similar promenade on Broadway from 47th Street north to near Columbus Circle, near 59th Street. Jeffrey Zupan at the Regional Plan Association said that not having to give a green light to traffic on part of Broadway will allow longer green lights for vehicles on the avenues and cross streets — making vehicular passage easier. “The win-win is that the space that you’re freeing up will be used by pedestrians,” Zupan said.