Streetfilms: “Summer Streets” Kickoff

Streetfilms’ Clarence Eckerson delivers this snappy video recap of yesterday’s press conference announcing “Summer Streets,” the Ciclovía-style car-free event that will open six miles of Manhattan thoroughfares to pedestrians and cyclists for three Saturdays in August. One quote from Mayor Bloomberg, which doesn’t seem to have made the cut in this morning’s media coverage, addresses (tentatively) the potential of the event to change the way people look at the city:

We have to try different things if we’re going to keep this city vibrant and interesting. We also have to stop talking about global warming and actually do something. I can’t tell you this is going to make a big difference, but it says to people, “There’s other ways to get around.”