Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about Car-Free Streets

Williamsburg Walks Doubles Foot Traffic on Bedford Avenue

By Ben Fried | Jul 28, 2008 | 4 Comments

Transportation Alternatives has been measuring the effect of Williamsburg Walks, the car-free street event on Bedford Avenue, and look what they found: Foot traffic on Bedford Avenue was 96% higher than the average Saturday, based on pedestrian counts. The number of children and seniors using the street also increased. And because so much more space […]

Streetfilms: A New Play Street for Jackson Heights

By Ben Fried | Jul 25, 2008 | 3 Comments

Streetfilms newcomer Robin Urban Smith brings us this romp through a new play street in Jackson Heights. Located in a neighborhood with little access to park space, the 78th Street Play Street effectively extends Travers Park out past the curb every Sunday for 20 weeks. Neighborhood groups Jackson Heights Green and Friends of Travers Park […]

Evaluating Summer Streets

By Aaron Naparstek | Jul 22, 2008 | 29 Comments

Here's a modest proposal for evaluating the success of a Summer Streets event: Measure the amount of time kids are able to run and play without their parents having to worry about them being hit by a car, the number of friends you bump into and new people you meet, the pounds of automobile exhaust and carbon that aren't being spewed into the hot summer air, the amount of horn-honking, engine-revving and boom stereos you're not hearing, and whether your local merchants are happy about the event and making more money than they usually do on a slow summer weekend.

Williamsburg Walks: Opening Up Bedford Avenue

By Aaron Naparstek | Jul 21, 2008 | 9 Comments

Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg Brooklyn was de-motorized and opened to the public this Saturday for a new event called Williamsburg Walks. Streetfilms’ Clarence Eckerson was there and he’s already churned out a nice three-and-a-half minute video to give you a sense of the event. If you want to check out Williamsburg Walks for yourself, you […]

Williamsburg Walks: Volunteer Orientation Tonight

By Aaron Naparstek | Jul 16, 2008 | 2 Comments

Brooklyn’s Bedford Avenue will be going car-free for four Saturdays this summer. If you want to be a part of making the event happen, Billburg.com invites you to a "Williamsburg Walks" volunteer orientation session tonight. Boricua College186 N. 6th St. (bet. Bedford & Driggs Aves.)Brooklyn RSVPs are encouraged, but not mandatory. RSVP to williamsburgwalks [at] […]

Streetfilms: Pedestrians Storm Smith Street, Sans Autos

By Ben Fried | Jul 14, 2008 | 1 Comment

Every year, on the Sunday closest to Bastille Day, Brooklyn bistro Bar Tabac helps put on one of the city’s finest car-free events, turning two blocks of Smith Street into a neighborhood party. As restaurants take over sidewalks with café seating and shady tents, the center of the street transforms into a sandy arena for […]

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