Noah Kazis
Noah joined Streetsblog as a New York City reporter at the start of 2010. When he was a kid, he collected subway paraphernalia in a Vignelli-map shoebox.
Before coming to Streetsblog, he blogged at TheCityFix DC and worked as a field organizer for the Obama campaign in Toledo, Ohio. Noah graduated from Yale University, where he wrote his senior thesis on the class politics of transportation reform in New York City. He lives in Morningside Heights.
Recent Posts
Gantt Reversal Revives Strong Complete Streets Bill in Assembly
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The corner of Syracuse’s S. Geddes St. and Seymour St. is the most dangerous intersection in Albany, Broome, Erie, Monroe, or Onondaga County. Image: Google Street View. A strong complete streets bill is back on track in Albany. Two weeks ago, Assembly Transportation Committee chair David Gantt amended the bill so that it only covered a […]
HUD Chief Preaches Livable Communities at Conference on Cities
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HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. Photo: Wikimedia. At least among cabinet secretaries, US DOT chief Ray LaHood has become something of a livable streets rock star. His forceful and public support for cyclists and pedestrians and his dedication to safe driving have earned him the praise of many. By comparison, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun […]
Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs: Senior Citizens Need Safer Streets
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Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs. Photo: City Hall News While receiving an honor from AARP last night, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn reiterated their support for the Age-Friendly New York City plan to make the city work better for senior citizens. Because New York’s elderly pedestrians are at the greatest risk from motor […]
Chicago Takes Tentative First Step Toward Bike-Sharing
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A pilot station for Chicago’s proposed bike-sharing program, on display a couple of weeks ago. Photo: vizcha via Flickr Public bike-sharing is coming to yet another American city. The concept, first proven in Lyon, France and made famous by Paris’s Vélib, offers members easy access to public bikes at stations across a city. With bike […]
Seeing the Street as a New Cyclist
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The de Maisonneuve bike path in downtown Montreal, which new cyclist Michael Shenker now avoids in favor of a different, calmer route. Photo: Carnotzet via Flickr. It’s no secret that the road looks different over handlebars than it does over the dashboard. When cycling most city streets, you see your surroundings differently: at a different […]
For Parking at New Domino, Don’t Worry About Environmental Review
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Environmental review laws don’t stop the City Council from cutting back on parking at the New Domino. Image: The New Domino As the City Council considers the parking-laden New Domino mega-development, sustainability-minded representatives have the power to ensure that the project doesn’t put thousands of new cars onto Williamsburg’s streets. All council members have to […]
Land Use Process Likely Safe in Charter Revision, But Major Issues Simmer
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Former Staten Island Council Member Stephen Fiala defends the role of borough presidents in land use decision-making. Image: SI Advance. The city’s Charter Revision Commission held its fifth issue forum last night, discussing the city’s complex land use process. Based on the commentary of a panel of expert witnesses, a major revision of the city’s […]
MTA Open Thread: How Will Service Cuts Affect You?
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No longer a bus stop, effective June 27. Image: Transportation Nation. With the cuts to New York City Transit taking effect this weekend, today’s the last day of service for many riders. If you take the V or W train, or the M6, M18, M27, M30, B23, B37, B39, B51, B71, B75, B77, Q74, Q75, […]
Bloomberg Touts Approval of 1,600 Parking Spaces at Flushing Commons
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Flushing Commons puts growth next to a major transit hub, but it’s stashing a lot of parking there as well. Image: Rockefeller Group Development Corporation. The City Planning Commission approved plans for the Flushing Commons development yesterday, sending the project forward through the land use approval process. Officials’ portrayals of this development, which will put 1,600 parking […]
As Service Cuts Kick In, MTA Deficit Keeps Growing
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Reports of the death of the M and R train in 2009 were greatly exaggerated, but tomorrow’s aren’t. Image: J Bary via Flickr. MTA service cuts are here. With reductions taking effect on Sunday, tomorrow marks the last day of operation for weekday-only services like the V and W trains, and many express buses. And […]
Questions Linger About Bloomberg’s New Livery Van Service
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Commuter vans, like this one in Sunset Park, could become a more common sight on New York’s streets. Image: The Brooklyn Ink. On Tuesday, Mayor Bloomberg announced a new pilot program to provide livery van service for transit-starved neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens, a proposal stemming from his 2009 campaign transit platform. The push to […]
Port Authority Chief Calls for Green Overhaul of Region’s Freight System
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Port Authority exec Chris Ward pointed to Dresden’s CarGoTram as a sustainable freight mover that the region could learn from. Image: Wikimedia. In a region where passenger transportation is being reimagined, freight needs to catch up. That’s the message Chris Ward, the executive director of the Port Authority, delivered in a "call to arms" at […]