Times Square

1970s

David Simon on the Uniqueness of New York

The creator of "The Wire" talks to CityLab about "The Deuce," New York City in the 1970s, and how strategies for one town won't always work for another.

October 30, 2017 - CityLab

Bollards

Saving Lives: Including Sidewalk Bollards in Street Design

Countless lives were likely saved by a strategically placed bollard on W. 45th Ave. which stopped a motorist who had driven three blocks on city sidewalks, mowing-down as many pedestrians as possible, from entering the Times Square pedestrian plaza.

May 31, 2017 - The New York Times

A Deadly Crash Is an Accident Because it Isn't Terrorism

Cable news networks interrupted broadcasts on Thursday morning with breaking news: a vehicle had just driven three block on the sidewalks in Times Square, New York, resulting in massive casualties. Anchors asked, "Was it terrorism or an accident?"

May 21, 2017 - Daily News

Public Wi-Fi

Why Sadik-Khan Succeeded in Making NYC's Streetscape Safer

A review and summary of Janette Sadik-Kahn's "Street Fight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution," by Bay Area architect and environmentalist Todd Jersey.

January 24, 2017 - UrbDeZine

High Line Crowds

Hidden in Plain Sight: Re-Appropriated Spaces

The projects depicted here re-use and re-appropriate public space, filling gaps in the built environment with parks, open areas, and pedestrian walkways.

March 13, 2016 - Architizer

Hudson Yards Subway Station

New York's First New Subway Station In 25 Years Opens Sunday

On Sept. 13, the Hudson Yards Subway Station, the new Manhattan terminal for the #7 line that terminates in Flushing, Queens, will open with a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony considering the $2.4 billion cost for the one mile extension.

September 12, 2015 - The New York Times

The Battle for Times Square—Why It Matters, Even Outside New York

The piece begins not in New York but three thousand miles west in Seattle with Janette Sadik-Khan explaining how she triumphed over auto interests by taking back precious road space and returning it to the people in the form of plazas and bike lanes.

August 30, 2015 - CityLab

De Blasio Could Open the Times Square Pedestrian Plaza to Cars

Exotic street performers in the plaza have caused Mayor Bill de Blasio to reconsider his initial opposition to street plazas. Unlike his police commissioner and the governor, de Blasio has yet to make a decision on the removal of Times Square plaza.

August 21, 2015 - The New York Times N.Y. / Region

Times Square Historic

From Times Square: How Many Pedestrians Is Too Many Pedestrians?

Times Square stakeholders have begun to raise the specter of "too much of a good thing," as the crowds flocking to Times Square threaten to squeeze the life out of the place.

January 29, 2015 - New York Times

De Blasio Indicates He May Revisit Popular Times Square Pedestrianization

In a debate held on Tuesday, and in a subsequent radio interview, leading New York City mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio indicated he'd like to study whether to bring back automobiles to a stretch of Broadway that had been closed for pedestrians.

October 24, 2013 - WNYC: Transportation Nation

The History of NYC's Peculiar New Year's Eve Tradition

Ever wonder why New York City drops an 11,875 pound ball on New Year's Eve? Onerous regulations, an indefatigable newspaper publisher, and New York's second tallest building fill Conor Friedersdorf's history of the Times Square ball drop.

December 31, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Bloomberg's Broadway Gamble Gets Standing Ovation

Nicole Gelinas reports on the effects of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s controversial 2009 transportation reforms, which have unexpectedly lightened the traffic and dangers on New York’s streets.

August 1, 2012 - City Journal

The Peril of the Pedestrian Mall

Pedestrian malls have had a very mixed success ever since Victor Gruen debuted them back in the 1960s. Scott Doyon says the problem is that going pedestrian-only is the flipside of being autocentric.

July 9, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Can Times Square's Makeover Win Back the Heart of New Yorkers?

Justin Davidson examines the latest "reinvention" of Times Square, sealing the deal on a move toward pedestrianization that began three years ago.

April 25, 2012 - New York Magazine

Developers and Landlords "Don't Know What's Best For Them"

While the article is headlined "We Need More Zoning," the body is more about the need to plan public spaces well before architects and developers come in to guide their projects for the public good.

December 7, 2011 - The New York Observer

Norwegian Practice Provides Times Square With A Noir Look

Norwegian firm Snøhetta's new design for Times Square pays heed to the historic intersections' lasciviousness, while retaining the popular pedestrianized Broadway.

September 30, 2011 - The Atlantic

Times Square "Meeting Bowls" Bring People Together

New street furniture being tested in the Broadway pedestrian zone attempts to create a semi-sheltered, intimate space in the middle of the glitz of 42nd St.

August 20, 2011 - PSFK

Breathing Better In NY's Pedestrian Plazas

Manhattan's pedestrian plaza's are associated with increasing vitality, reducing congestion, and now this new study shows, improving air quality be reducing concentrations of nitrogen oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2)

April 16, 2011 - Gothamist

Counting Foot Traffic in Times Square

The BBC talks with some of the people involved with counting pedestrians in New York City's Times Square. Since being closed off to cars, foot traffic has greatly increased.

October 1, 2010 - BBC

Jane Jacobs and the Times Square Bomb

Slate's Fred Kaplan points out that the Times Square bomber was thwarted because of Jacob's famous "eyes on the street."

May 10, 2010 - Slate

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