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
Election Night Open Thread: Rivera KOs Espada
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The early returns are in, and Pedro Espada is going to have to make up some ground to retain his seat in the State Senate. Other incumbents don’t seem to be in as much jeopardy. Update: It’s official. Espada has conceded the race to challenger Gustavo Rivera. It also looks like congestion pricing antagonist and […]
Primary Day Open Thread
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So the big day is here and several seats in the state legislature are in play. Leave your analysis, predictions, and stories from the polls in the comments.
Can Streetcars Work for Red Hook? City Begins Study to Find Out
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The New York City Department of Transportation announced today that the agency has started a five-month study to determine whether streetcars should return to Brooklyn on a route linking Red Hook to the downtown area. The city first committed to the study this spring, using funds secured by Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez back in 2005. Today’s […]
House Candidates Powell and Towns Taking Questions on WNYC Today
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This year’s election coverage at Streetsblog is mostly focused on the primary races where seats in the state legislature are up for grabs, but we’ve also got some competitive congressional contests where the Democratic nomination is at stake. One of them is the 10th congressional district in Brooklyn, where 13-term incumbent Ed Towns faces a […]
Labor Day Bonus Pic: Hudson River Greenway Bollard at Work
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Via Gothamist — check out this bollard on the Hudson River Greenway at work. One of the strange and dangerous things about the greenway is that car traffic crosses the car-free path at several points. Twice in 2006, motorists killed people using the greenway. On December 1, 2006, cyclist Eric Ng was run down by […]
Eyes on the Street: Uprooted CityRack
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A tipster sends this picture of one of the city’s new bike racks that, someway, somehow, got wrenched out of the pavement. We’re told that the sidewalk at Fulton Street and Rockwell Place in Brooklyn had a big chunk missing where the bike rack would have been. After this bike rack design won a 2008 […]
Lynn Nunes Gets Stage All to Himself at District 10 Transpo Q&A
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It turns out that Shirley Huntley was the no-show at Wednesday night’s State Senate District 10 transportation debate, letting challenger Lynn Nunes turn in a solo performance. Nunes is young — 25 — but he’s commanding attention in this race after coming within four votes of unseating the recently deceased Thomas White in the City […]
Challenger Nunes Attends Transpo Debate; Incumbent Huntley a No-Show
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UPDATE: Strike the original post (formerly titled: “Challenger Nunes Reportedly Backs Out of Transportation Debate”). Lynn Nunes did answer questions at tonight’s District 10 transportation debate, while longtime incumbent Shirley Huntley did not attend. We’ll have details from the event tomorrow. Lynn Nunes, the challenger going up against Shirley Huntley in the State Senate’s 10th […]
Eyes on the Street: Union Square’s Public Space Makeover Underway
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Reader Holly Hudson sends this picture of the north side of Union Square earlier today. Orange construction barrels are lined up here and around the corner on Broadway, as crews get ready to add new pedestrian spaces and extend Broadway’s protected bike lane, which will run against the flow of traffic on this particular block. […]
Three Transpo Debates Coming Up in First Week of September
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This November, New York voters will elect the occupants of every seat in the State Senate and Assembly, as well as their next governor, attorney general, and comptroller. For many races in heavily Democratic New York City, the deciding moment will come a lot sooner — on primary day. That’s just two weeks away on […]
Caption Contest: Shelly’s Lifetime Supply of Free Parking
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Photo courtesy of the Daily Politics Why is Rochester Mayor and lieutenant governor-in-waiting Robert Duffy presenting this novelty oversized parking placard to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver? The occasion was a ribbon-cutting for a parking structure that just re-opened in downtown Rochester. Back in 2006, an exit ramp of the South Avenue Garage collapsed. Miraculously, no […]
Cyclist in Critical Condition After Hit-and-Run on Second Avenue
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Image: NY1 Robert Bowen, 45, was bicycling south on Second Avenue near 59th Street last night when he was struck by a truck driver who didn’t stop at the scene. He sustained severe trauma to the body, according to police, and was taken to Cornell Hospital in critical condition. NY1 reports: Sources say 45-year-old Robert […]