New York City and San Jose have expanded or added rules that temporarily close some of their streets to automobile traffic. This continues a string of successes for the open streets movement.
Joining a movement that began in Colombia, American cities are finding new opportunities to temporarily restrict car traffic, giving pedestrians and cyclists the freedom of the streets. "This fall, the City of San Jose and Silicon Valley Bike Coalition will close off six miles of streets from cars — leaving the road open for biking, walking, playing and skating. The inaugural 'Viva CalleSJ,' announced this week, will take place on October 11th."
The west coast and Latin America have a good track record for these kinds of events. "San Jose is joining a number of other cities that have already hosted open streets events, including Los Angeles, Guadalajara, Mexico, and Bogota, Colombia." Los Angeles' CicLAvia is one of the more well-known open streets events in the United States.
And now, the movement is gaining momentum on the other side of the country, especially in conjunction with New York's Vision Zero plan to reduce traffic fatalities. "On the East Coast, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced [...] that he will close large parts of Prospect Park and Central Park to vehicles on weekdays."
FULL STORY: Closing Streets to Cars for Walkers and Cyclists Is Getting More Popular by the Minute
A Vision Zero Success Story in New York
The 300-foot wide Queens Boulevard has been known as the Boulevard of Death. Since 1990, it has claimed 186 lives, 74 percent being pedestrians, including 18 in 1997 alone. A series of safety improvements have brought fatalities to zero since 2014.
Statistics Show NYPD Enforcing Vision Zero Pedestrian Safety Initiative
The law enforcement results are in from the first year of Vision Zero policy in New York City.
Big Cities Make Pedestrian Safety a Priority
New data released Dec. 19 by NHTSA shows increased safety for those traveling by car, but pedestrian fatalities are 15% higher than in 2009. Plans by San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago to increase ped safety are described by the WSJ.
How Would Project 2025 Affect America’s Transportation System?
Long story short, it would — and not in a good way.
But... Europe
European cities and nations tend to have less violent crime than the United States. Is government social welfare spending the magic bullet that explains this difference?
First Model Homes Revealed in Disney-Built Community
Disney’s Cotino, in the Southern California desert, is the first of the company’s ‘Storybook Living’ developments.
California Governor Vetoes Autonomous Truck Ban, Approves New Guidelines for AVs
A new law will allow police to issue citations to self-driving car operators and create stricter guidelines for crashes and interactions with first responders.
Banning Right Turns on Red Just One Step Toward Vision Zero
Experts caution that blanket bans on right turns on red make only a slight contribution to reducing fatal crashes, and other interventions are needed to bring down traffic fatalities.
Hundreds of Thousands of Housing Units Could Lose Affordability
As the 30-year term of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit expires for many affordable housing units, the families living there face steep rent hikes and evictions.
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City of El Paso
Ada County Highway District
Placer County
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Cornell University's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the Department of City and Regional Planning (CRP)
Lehigh Valley Planning Commission
City of Portland, ME
Baton Rouge Area Foundation