Contested Seats

A correspondent reports:

Last Thursday it was standing-room-only at the City Council screening of Contested Streets: Breaking NYC Gridlock. Over one hundred people packed the 75-seat hearing room at the invitation of Councilmember John Liu and other members of the City Council transportation committee. The new documentary film, co-produced by Transportation Alternatives and Mark Gorton, is proving popular with city leaders interested in how New York can follow the example of London, Paris and other big cities that are successfully taming traffic. The film features footage of London’s congestion charge zone, Paris’s new Bus Rapid Transit system, and Copenhagen’s network of bike and pedestrian streets.

It is somewhat remarkable to see a powerful outer-borough Councilmember like John Liu on-board with the Livable Streets agenda. You’ve got to ask yourself: Who is New York City government is against this stuff anyway? Who is defending and maintaing the status quo of maximum traffic gridlock on New York City’s streets? Perhaps today’s previous post helps answer that question.

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

City Council Screening of “Contested Streets”

|
Thursday, July 20, 2006 at 2:30 pm New York City Council250 Broadway, 14th Floor Hearing Room (across from City Hall). FILM SCREENING & DISCUSSION with the NYC Council’s Transportation Committee "Contested Streets: Breaking NYC Gridlock" Thursday, July 20th, 2:30 pm Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringerand New York City Council Members John C. Liu, Joseph […]

Pedestrian Interference

|
  Left to right: New York City Department of Transportation Deputy Commissioner/Senior Policy Advisor David Woloch, Commissioner Iris Weinshall, a procurement and technical servicea aide and City Councilmembers John Liu and Gale Brewer. As I saw it, the three big bullet points to come out of yesterday’s City Council Transportation Committee hearing on Intro. 199, […]

Traffic Relief Advocates: Meet Your Opponents

|
Front row, left to right: Councilmember Melinda Katz, Councilmember Leroy Comrie, Councilmember Helen Sears, Councilmember David Weprin, Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free spokesman Walter McCaffrey,  Ray Irrera from the Queens Chamber of Commerce is behind McCaffrey, Joe Conley of Queens Community Board 2 and John Corlett from AAA. (Photo: Aaron Naparstek) In response to the Partnership for New York City’s report, […]

Council District 20: Who Will Replace the Mercurial John Liu?

|
L-r: Council candidates S.J. Jung, John Choe, Evergreen C. Chou, James Wu and Isaac Sasson Outgoing Council Member John Liu has been a fickle legislator when it comes to livable streets. While the transportation committee chair might endorse congestion pricing, he was also a staunch defender of the mythical put-upon working stiff whose very survival […]

You Can’t Complain About Albany If You Don’t Vote Tomorrow

|
The primary election is Tuesday, with a number of State Senate and Assembly seats up for grabs. Meanwhile, upstart Democrat Zephyr Teachout is, at the very least, seriously getting on Andrew Cuomo’s nerves. Many races will be decided tomorrow. In some, incumbents are facing off against big name challengers. In others, political newcomers are vying […]

How Bill de Blasio and John Liu Can Stand Up for Transit Riders

|
Contrary to popular belief, the mayor isn’t the only elected official with a say in New York City transportation policy. So in this installment of Streetsblog’s series on Michael Bloomberg’s third term, we’re switching things up a bit. We asked New York’s most experienced transit advocate, Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign, how Comptroller-elect John […]