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
Eyes on the Street: Leading Bicycle Intervals and Semi-Protected Intersections
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Readers are spying new DOT intersection treatments for bikeways popping up in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
If de Blasio Had a Coherent Transportation Policy He’d Stand a Chance Against Cuomo
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We don't want to just watch a bloody political melee about how to fix transit and traffic in NYC -- we want transit and traffic to get fixed. Unfortunately, de Blasio is almost always off-balance and unable to steer Cuomo's aggression in a productive direction, even when opportunities present themselves.
Thursday: Join Us at the Streets Ball and Support Journalism That Makes a Difference for NYC Streets
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If you've been holding off buying tickets to Streetsblog's big annual fundraising event, time is running short -- Streets Ball 2017 is coming up on Thursday. Huge wins for transit, biking, and walking are possible in the year ahead, and we need your help to make the most of these opportunities.
Join Us on October 26 and Support Media That Makes a Difference for NYC Streets
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Please join Streetsblog and Streetfilms for our annual benefit, the Streets Ball, on October 26 at Current, right off the Hudson River Greenway at 18th Street.
De Blasio’s No Leader on Transportation and Climate
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The mayor's strategy on climate policy lacks an essential quality of leadership: courage.
Incumbency Buoys Candidates in City Council Primaries, for Better and Worse
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Several council members with substantial records in support of bus lanes, bike lanes, or pedestrian safety improvements fended off challengers.
Forget Upstate Legislators - Why Don't NYC Dems Advocate for Better Transit?
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New York City's own contingent in the state legislature is the bigger stumbling block to better transit.
The Unbearable Hassle of Carpooling From Eastern Queens
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There is no right to drive for free within New York City limits. What we do have is a transit system where the poorest have to pay more per trip than the richest, and where people forgo reasonable transit options and the slight inconvenience of carpooling to clog streets with their polluting single-occupancy vehicles.
De Blasio’s Wrong — Congestion Pricing Will Make NYC Transportation Fairer
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People who can afford a $10 or $20 Uber ride are slowing down people who can afford a $2.75 bus fare. Move NY will change that.
Cuomo Cares More About the New Tappan Zee Bridge Than NYC Subways and Buses
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The governor has spent most of his time in office consumed with building a huge double-span highway bridge, while New York's transit system slides into catastrophic disarray.
So Far Cuomo’s Congestion Pricing “Plan” Is All Sizzle, No Steak
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It's not congestion pricing if it doesn't toll the East River bridges. There are a number of impostor policies that Cuomo could try to pass off as "congestion pricing" instead.
DOT’s Plan for Thomson Ave Caters to Cars, Not the Thousands of Students Heading to School
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A DOT redesign proposed for Thomson Avenue by LaGuardia Community College doesn't do enough for street safety, and Queens volunteers with Transportation Alternatives are pressing the agency to come back with a stronger plan.