Thursday’s Headlines: Failed State Edition

Yes, Harlem residents are still forced into the street because their bus can't get to the curb. Photo: Adam Light
Yes, Harlem residents are still forced into the street because their bus can't get to the curb. Photo: Adam Light

Let’s take a second to close the circle on the three-day saga of NYPD officers parking their private vehicles in a Harlem bus stop.

We caught them on Monday (one year after the NYPD told The City it would put an end to the placard abuse). On Tuesday, the mayor was asked about it, and he promised to take action. On Wednesday morning, we found the cop cars were still in the bus stop.

And then…

Word got out at the precinct that the top brass wanted those cars out of there. Sure enough, they were moved — replaced by unwitting members of the public who probably didn’t even realize that the spaces were illegal (after all, the cops had been parking there for years).

Then the NYPD sent an officer to make sure all the members of the public got tickets.

Friend of Streetsblog Jeff Novich captured in an epic, must-read Twitter thread that leaves you with the feeling that de Blasio’s New York is a failed state:

In other news:

  • Speaking of failed state, the de Blasio administration is really screwing up the outdoor schooling idea — and time is running out. (The City)
  • The Times turned the carpocalypse into a cute trend story. It’s hard not to hate-read it knowing that most of the city-dwelling car owners will soon have buyer’s remorse.
  • Hero or hazard: A man was photographed riding a bike across the bike-lane-less Verrazzano Bridge. (SI Advance) (Bike Twitter said hero.)
  • The Times played up the battle lines in the fight over the Industry City rezoning in Sunset Park, but gave surprisingly few details about the actual proposal, making it difficult for readers to decide for themselves.
  • We received a nice compliment for our story on the need for an NYPD residency requirement.
  • People of a certain age (like our grizzled editor) were saddened by the news that the Daily News will no longer have a physical newsroom (NY Times). Newspapers are made with a simple formula: take a group of mildly misanthropic, slightly self-important, dysfunctional people (like our grizzled editor); pump them full of caffeine, wire feeds and bitterness; and cram them in a small room. Somehow, the pages always get filled in. (Daily News Editor Robert York had little to say about the decision.)
  • This Mister Softee driver is a real jerk, plowing over an open-street barricade — twice! — because he was too lazy to move it. (NY Post)
  • Larry Penner offered a tribute to former MTA boss Robert Kiley on the fourth anniversary of his death. (Railway Age)
  • And, finally, from the assignment desk. Brooklyn Council Member Steve Levin, who has vowed to end placard abuse (at least in his district!), will have a long-awaited presser at 3 p.m. at Ground Zero for placard corruption: Jay and Johnson streets. (Look for that orange Charger with the FDNY placard!)

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