Harlem
Streetsblog Basics
155th Street Ped Safety Fixes Clear Three Uptown Community Board Votes
The Manhattan side of the 155th Street Bridge is a complex intersection where pedestrians are too often forgotten within a swirl of turning vehicles and impatient drivers. The intersection is also on the border of three community boards, adding extra layers of review for DOT efforts to improve safety. As of last night, transportation committees at all three boards have voted in support of the proposal, which will add pedestrian islands and turn restrictions while shortening crossing distances and calming traffic [PDF]. After it clears the full boards, the safety fixes are scheduled to be installed next year.
October 15, 2014
One City, By Bike: Unlocking Uptown Cycling With the Harlem River Bridges
This is part four of a five-part series by former NYC DOT policy director Jon Orcutt about the de Blasio administration’s opportunities to expand and improve cycling in New York. Read part one, part two, and part three.
September 4, 2014
Eyes on the Street: Carving Up Morningside Avenue for a Road Diet
After a breakthrough vote from Community Board 10 in May, DOT crews are out remaking 10 blocks of Morningside Avenue as a safer, calmer neighborhood street. This morning, @SteveMiami captured this circular saw operator at what looks like the moment of incision -- the asphalt will be cut away to make room for a concrete pedestrian island.
July 28, 2014
Seeking Safer Routes to Walk and Bike Across the Harlem River
Have you ever tried biking or walking across the Harlem River? Despite a plethora of bridges, walkers and bikers often face crossings and approaches that are confusing or downright hostile. A new campaign from Transportation Alternatives and local residents aims to focus DOT's attention on making it safer for New Yorkers to get between the two boroughs under their own power.
July 23, 2014
Manhattan Community Board 10 Votes for Morningside Safety Plan
Last night, Manhattan Community Board 10 approved the NYC DOT plan to add pedestrian islands and trim traffic lanes on 10 blocks of Morningside Avenue [PDF]. A concerted effort from neighborhood street safety advocates and local elected officials, including City Council Member Mark Levine and State Senator Adriano Espaillat, helped overcome recalcitrance at CB 10, which dragged its feet for nearly a year before yesterday's vote.
June 5, 2014
Select Bus Service Launches on 125th Street
On Sunday, Select Bus Service launched on a route that stretches from 125th Street in Harlem to LaGuardia Airport. Public officials marked the occasion -- the first SBS route to debut during the de Blasio era -- at a Harlem press conference today. With off-board fare collection and dedicated bus lanes (on part of the route), the upgrades will speed cross-town trips for 33,000 bus riders daily, on both the M60 SBS route and local routes that will benefit from the bus lanes only.
May 27, 2014
CBs Eye Safety Tweaks on 155th Street Through Denny Farrell’s Windshield
A dangerous Upper Manhattan intersection could get pedestrian safety upgrades [PDF], if three community boards can agree on a plan. Wednesday evening, DOT invited neighborhood residents and members of Community Boards 9, 10, and 12 to a meeting that resulted in some consensus, though implementation remains about a year away. As at last year's meeting, however, the show was stolen by local Assembly Member Herman “Denny” Farrell, the powerful chair of the Ways and Means Committee, who critiqued the project from a windshield perspective.
May 23, 2014
In Harlem, Bradhurst Plaza Supporters Struggle to Change Status Quo
Manhattan Community Board 10's transportation committee ended months of foot-dragging this week by backing a road diet for Morningside Avenue in Harlem. It's not quite a brand new day at CB 10 though: A community effort to convert a short, irregular block into a public plaza still has an uphill climb at the Harlem board. While there's a substantial local coalition backing the project, a cadre of outspoken opponents use the existing street as a drop-off zone for their apartment building and don't want to see any changes.
May 16, 2014
Morningside Ave. Road Diet Set for July After CB 10 Chair Urges Support
With new, clear marching orders from chair Henrietta Lyle after nine months of stalled deliberations, Community Board 10's transportation committee voted unanimously last night to support a road diet plan [PDF] for a speeding-plagued stretch of Morningside Avenue. Pending expected support from the full board next month, DOT is scheduled to implement the safer street design in July.
May 15, 2014
As CB 10 Dithers, Espaillat and Levine Urge DOT to Act on Morningside Ave.
While Manhattan Community Board 10 refuses to endorse pedestrian safety improvements for Morningside Avenue in Harlem, two lawmakers are urging DOT to move forward.
May 14, 2014