Ben Fried started as a Streetsblog reporter in 2008 and led the site as editor-in-chief from 2010 to 2018. He lives in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, with his wife.
Ben Fried
Recent Posts
Safer, More Livable Streets for the East Side — The Campaign Heats Up
| | 6 Comments
Advocates and volunteers working for protected bike paths on the East Side, flush from last month’s highly encouraging Community Board 8 vote, delivered more than a thousand handwritten letters yesterday to City Hall, supporting protected bike lanes on First and Second Avenues. Keep an eye on this story. It’s a big one. East Side residents […]
Tish James: We Need to Improve NYC’s Most Unreliable Bus, But…
| | 19 Comments
Yesterday the Straphangers Campaign awarded Brooklyn’s B44 the Schleppie Award in recognition of its status as the most unreliable bus route in the city. Over 20 percent of B44 buses, which run on the Nostrand Avenue corridor, arrive either bunched together or very far apart. About 42,000 people endure the route’s maddening inconsistency every weekday. […]
Parks Dept. Truck Seriously Injures Wheelchair User in 8th Ave Bike Lane
| | 27 Comments
A Parks Department sanitation truck struck a 78-year-old woman using a motor-assisted wheelchair in the Eighth Avenue bike lane this morning shortly before 10 a.m., just north of Bleecker Street. The victim suffered head trauma and was taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital, where she is in serious condition, a police spokesman said. No further details […]
The Third Term
| | 9 Comments
For the next four years, Mike Bloomberg will be joined in citywide office by Democrats Bill de Blasio and John Liu. Mike Bloomberg defeated Bill Thompson yesterday to claim a third term as New York City mayor, but no one except the mayor’s own staff is calling the five point margin a victory for the […]
Bike-Share: Not Just for French Commies
| | 5 Comments
In Montreal, theft is “not a major problem” for the bike-share network. Photo: TreeHugger. The Times ran a piece on Vélib’s growing pains this weekend. The story is more thoroughly reported than the hatchet job we saw from the BBC back in February — no claims that bike-share in Paris will flame out quickly this […]
Streetfilms: Congressman Earl Blumenauer Bikes NYC
| | 7 Comments
Oregon Rep. Earl Blumenauer is one of Capitol Hill’s strongest voices for walking, biking and transit. Soon after arriving in Congress in 1996, he started the Congressional Bike Caucus, now more than 160 members strong, and he’s the founding chairman of the House’s new "Livable Communities Task Force," which he announced two weeks ago here […]
Election Day Open Thread: How Busy Was Your Polling Place?
| | 15 Comments
A campaign prop courtesy of Republican City Council candidate Joe Nardiello, spied on windshields in Brooklyn’s 39th district. Photo: Sarah Goodyear. It’s Election Day, and everyone seems to agree that when all is said and done, turnout will be shamefully low. So forget about the Marist poll, the Q poll, and the internal campaign polls. […]
Brooklyn Bus Stop Draws Bigger Crowd Than Thompson Anti-BRT “Rally”
| | 45 Comments
Bill Thompson hops off his campaign truck at the corner of Fulton and Nostrand in Bed Stuy. Also pictured: Council Member Tish James, Comptroller favorite John Liu, and the frontrunner for Public Advocate, Bill de Blasio (facing away from camera). With extremely low turnout expected for tomorrow’s mayoral election, Bill Thompson and Mike Bloomberg canvassed […]
The High Cost of Free Riders
| | 8 Comments
Whenever the prospect of funding our transit system with bridge tolls or congestion pricing arises, you can count on a hue and cry from aggrieved motorists about subsidizing other people’s commutes. But if the bridges stay free, who’s really paying for somebody else’s ride? Today’s Times story about the last phase of Manhattan Bridge reconstruction […]
Broken Streets Theory: How to Alter the Psychology of Reckless Driving
| | 11 Comments
Jessie Singer has a great feature in the latest issue of TA’s Reclaim magazine (now available online), examining the NYPD’s failure to curb dangerous driving. After pushing down violent crime rates so effectively based on data-driven analysis, she asks, why don’t police use the same techniques to tame the life-threatening hazards of New York City […]
24 Hours Left to Register for TSTC’s Annual Benefit
| | No Comments
A quick reminder: You can RSVP for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s annual benefit up until 3 p.m. tomorrow. The word from Tri-State’s Veronica Vanterpool is that they’ve lined up a great space with a tasteful selection of wine, beer and hors d’oeuvres. The schmoozing figures to be a Streetsblog reader’s dream. Local transpo officials, community […]
Second Life: NYC Parking Meters to Reincarnate as Bike Racks
| | 7 Comments
Headless meter poles on Madison Avenue, awaiting rebirth. Photo: Wiley Norvell. New York’s trusty single-space parking meters are a dying breed. They’ve served commercial corridors admirably, but they’re rapidly giving way to muni-meters (which are much better suited for innovations in curbside pricing, like DOT’s PARKSmart program). The downside of the shrinking meter supply: New […]