Streetfilms: Get a Load of How Abnormal New York is Right Now

Park Avenue on Friday, March 20, 2020. Photo: Clarence Eckerson Jr.
Park Avenue on Friday, March 20, 2020. Photo: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

I hadn’t been on my bicycle in over a week, choosing to walk and run for exercise during the coronavirus (and observing recommended precautions), but I was curious what my normal commute looked like. So on Friday, I bicycled from Jackson Heights into Manhattan.

Comparing my new footage to my many reels of archive footage provides a reminder of how much we’ve lost — but also allows us to imagine what kind of city we could have when we emerge from this pandemic.

It could be great (if we don’t mess it up).

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