Confirmed: DOT Studying More Car-Free Time in Central Park

By Noah Kazis
Jul 26, 2011

Last week, automated traffic counters were seen popping up on the loop drive in Central Park. That led many to believe that the Department of Transportation was gathering data to set a baseline for future changes to the hours cars are allowed into the park, a fact which has now been confirmed.

Wrote Manhattan DOT Commissioner Margaret Forgione in a letter to Community Board 7 Chair Mel Wymore [PDF], whose board led the push for a car-free trial:

“We recently received and reviewed your resolution to implement a pilot program to establish a car-free summer on Central Park’s Drives. While there are no changes planned at this time, we will be collecting data this summer on the volume and speeds of vehicles using both the Park Drives and the surrounding streets. This data can inform any future plans for reducing the amount of time that the Park Drives are open to vehicular traffic.”

A summertime trial of a car-free Central Park has earned the support of every community board in Manhattan but one, several City Council members, and Borough President Scott Stringer. Even so, that proposal was rejected for this summer by Mayor Bloomberg, who preferred to study traffic patterns more before even testing out a car-free park. Those studies are now officially underway.

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Happy Independence Day: Central Park North Loop Is Car-Free This Summer

By Brad Aaron | Jul 3, 2013

Beginning next week, Central Park’s north loop will be closed to cars for two months, DOT announced today. From a DOT Summer Streets 2013 press release: Beginning Monday, July 8, Central Park’s drives north of 72nd Street will be car-free for the remainder of the summer, greatly enhancing access for pedestrians, bike riders and all […]

DOT: “No Plans at This Time” for Car-Free Central Park Trial

By Noah Kazis | Jul 1, 2011

The July 4 weekend is upon us and with it, the height of summer. If Manhattan’s community boards had their way, summertime would mean a trial closure of Central Park’s loop drive to cars. A resolution to try out such a closure from “the summer months through Labor Day” earned the support of Community Boards […]

Rumor Mill: City Collecting Data for Car-Free Central Park?

By Brad Aaron | Jul 20, 2011

Central Park advocate Ken Coughlin tells us he’s spotted a traffic counting strip on the park loop, near Tavern on the Green. The theory is that the city is gathering traffic data this summer as a baseline for a car-free park trial next year. That would jibe with recent remarks from Mayor Bloomberg and references […]

Car traffic exiting Prospect Park's East Drive at Grand Army Plaza this morning. Photo: David Meyer

This Summer, Prospect Park Will Be Completely Car-Free for the First Time

By David Meyer | Jul 10, 2017

Prospect Park will be completely car-free from July 17 through September 10, Mayor de Blasio and DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg announced this morning. It's the first time that Prospect Park will cease to be a shortcut for car traffic for more than a few days at a time.

Mayor de Blasio at today's presser announcing that Central Park will soon be car-free. Photo: David Meyer

Central Park Goes Car-Free Forever on June 27

By Ben Fried and David Meyer | Apr 20, 2018

The campaign for a car-free park has lasted more than half a century and involved thousands of people. Today's historic announcement by Mayor de Blasio belongs to all of them.

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

By Stephen Miller | Apr 21, 2015

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 […]