At least on Sundays, in August, on certain streets, during a certain time. BUT IT’S A START! Modeled after the Cicloviá in Bogotá (see video below).

On three Saturday mornings in August, the Department of Transportation will ban cars from nearly 5 miles of city streets to make way for cyclists, joggers and walkers. Starting at the beginning of Centre St. in Lower Manhattan, then moving north onto Lafayette St., Fourth Ave. and Park Ave., people will be able to travel all the way to 72nd St. and then to Central Park by walking down the middle of a street.

The streets will be closed to cars on August 9, 16 and 23 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. On 15 major east-west streets, like Canal, 14th St. and 42nd St., cars will be allowed to cross the car-free zone.

(via)

As far as I know this is the first time a major city in America has decided to shut down major city streets to cars in favor of greener modes of transport. I am pretty impressed and hope it is a magnificent success that leads to doing this sort of thing on a permanent basis, and expanding the area that is car free.

I live in Boston, and anyone who has been here knows that the place is hell to drive a car in. My dream would be to shut down all of the “hub” area (downtown) to passenger cars. Only cabs, bus’ and delivery trucks and tour vehicles would be allowed to drive there (and people with special mobility needs). Everyone else would have to walk, ride, or bike in. The streets of Boston are so twisted and narrow that walking or riding your bike is really the only kind of transportation that makes any kind of sense. And the whole place is so small that you can easily get around by foot or by bike.

Not everyone is happy with the NYC decision,

The owner of Elan, an antique furniture store on Lafayette Street, Jeff Greenberg, 55, called the street closing “a horrible nightmare.”

“There’s no doubt that it will affect my business negatively,” Mr. Greenberg said in an interview yesterday.

In addition to his concern that customers would not come without cars, he said the only way to load furniture into his store was through the front entrance on Lafayette Street, which would be impossible during a road closing.

“They’ve got to be kidding,” the manager and owner of the League of Mutual Taxi Owners, Vincent Capone, said. “It’s getting harder and harder for a cab driver to be out there making a living with all these traffic rules.”

Instead of closing off Manhattan streets, Mr. Capone suggested organizing an event in nearby Central Park or in Brooklyn. “This is New York, this is Manhattan,” he said. “We’re not in the middle of a forest somewhere.”

(via)

but you know what, screw them. I know that sounds harsh but welcome to reality. You think it’s hard to sell furniture when people can’t drive up, try selling furniture when most of NYC is under water due to global warming. Try driving a cab when gasoline is 10 dollars a gallon, you think anyone is going to pay for that? We are WAY past the point when we could have made easy choices. Returning our cities to walking and biking is not only a good idea (health, oil costs, global warming, slower pace of life, happiness, etc…) it is a vital component in our fight against global warming.

Forgive me if I am not sympathetic to arguments about closing five miles of road for a couple of hours every Sunday in one month, perhaps the stores should make the best of it and invite the hundreds of people walking by to come in and check out their wares. Perhaps the stores could provide bike parking and chairs for pedestrians. Perhaps they will get a lot MORE business because most of the people walking and riding by wont be doing so at 30 miles per hour. It is amazing how much more you notice stores when you are not wizzing by them, or stuck underground in a train.

I hope Boston and other major metropolitan areas follow Bogotá’s lead and start closing down parts of the city to cars on a regular basis. I welcome a new era of bicycle and pedestrian friendly cities. Good job New York City!

Read more about this cool plan here and here.