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
Q Poll: 74 Percent of New Yorkers Think Bike-Share Is a Good Idea
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The latest round of angry tabloid editorials shows no signs of dampening New Yorkers’ enthusiasm for bike-share. A Quinnipiac poll released today shows support for a network of public bicycles at 74 percent citywide, the highest positives yet for an idea that has consistently scored very well in public opinion. Bike-share’s popularity holds pretty steady across […]
Fend Off the Tappan Zee Death Spiral With a Bridge Diet
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Bloomberg reports today that Governor Andrew Cuomo has charged the Thruway Authority with appointing a panel to “find alternatives, revenue generators and cost reductions that reduce the potential toll increases” on the replacement Tappan Zee Bridge. The Cuomo administration revealed late last week that the superwide, transit-less replacement bridge — estimated to cost $5.2 billion — […]
The Bike and Pedestrian Safety Stats the Daily News Won’t Cover
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The bike-hate trifecta in today’s Daily News is really something to behold: a piece on cyclists topping the 25 mph speed in Central Park which required the labor of at least four reporters; a companion editorial, leading the opinion page, spewing invective at some of the people who have done the most to make the […]
Eyes on the Street: New and Improved Allen Street Bikeway and Plazas
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The construction barriers are down and the tables and chairs are out on Allen Street in Chinatown. While there’s still some planting and other work left to be done, the public spaces are already magnets for people. The median bikeway on the three-block stretch between Hester and Delancey is also open and rideable again. The […]
Photos From Year Five of Summer Streets
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Thanks to reader Jeff Prant for sending in these pics from the Midtown section of Saturday’s Summer Streets installment. I caught the tail end of the event, and turnout seemed as strong as ever. If the forecast holds, it looks like this Saturday will be less hot and muggy. Which is good, because I think […]
With Tolls Projected to Nearly Triple, New TZB Risks Financial Death Spiral
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Well, this explains why the Cuomo administration has been so reluctant to discuss how to pay for the new Tappan Zee Bridge. At a public meeting last night, Secretary to the Governor Larry Schwartz told the crowd that cash tolls would rise to $14 on the replacement bridge, with a slight discount for E-ZPass holders […]
Construction of East Harlem Protected Bike Lanes Slated to Start This Month
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Before cleaning his workspace yesterday and packing up for New Haven, Noah Kazis snagged one more piece of good news, which it is my pleasure to report: DOT will begin constructing a protected bike lane on Second Avenue in East Harlem at the end of August. The first section to be built will stretch from […]
If Today’s NY Post Editorial Board Were Writing in 1904…
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Inspired by the bike-share screed in today’s Post and the excellent archive at nycsubway.org… August 1, 1904 – It’s time to admit that New York City should never have embarked on the folly of Subway construction. Here we sit, four years after the work of excavating the city’s streets began, and while the taxpayer has […]
Are Streets for Families to Travel Safely or for NYPD Squad Car Storage?
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It’s just one short block of Bergen Street in Prospect Heights, but the guerrilla bike lane birthed by local resident Ian Dutton has become an object lesson in the conflict between NYPD’s use of street space, on the one hand, and New Yorkers’ safety on the other. On Saturday, when BrooklynSpoke’s Doug Gordon snapped this […]
How Much Bang Are Cities Getting From Federal BRT Bucks?
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How substantial are the benefits delivered by federal investment in bus rapid transit projects, and how can the feds help local governments build better bus improvements? A new report from the non-partisan Government Accountability Office [PDF] looks at the results of BRT projects that have been completed in 20 cities since 2005, when SAFETEA-LU expanded federal […]
Eyes on the Street: The Bus Bulb at the Nexus of the Universe
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Thanks to @J_uptown for tipping us off to this transit enhancement in the making (and providing the Seinfeld-inspired headline). The fresh sidewalk addition here is a bus bulb for Select Bus Service on First Avenue. When it’s in working order, bus drivers won’t have to pull over to the curb to pick up and drop off […]
Monday: Join Us for a Fond Farewell to Streetsblog NYC Reporter Noah Kazis
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Brace yourselves, Streetsblog readers, and enjoy the journalism of Noah Kazis while you still can. On August 1, Noah will be departing Streetsblog and moving on to Yale Law School in the fall. We will be welcoming Stephen Miller as our next NYC reporter shortly thereafter. Stephen is currently finishing his master’s degree in planning […]