Get Ready, Union Square and 34th Street: Changes are Afoot

Following on the heels of the much-disputed pedestrian plaza near New York’s 42nd Street and Times Square, another such plaza is in the works for the area between 17th and 18th Streets, north of Broadway near Union Square. The plan is expected to be brought before the local community board on Monday.
Also in the works: A walkway along 34th Street, between Herald Square and the Empire State Building, which would turn the thoroughfare—one of the city’s most crowded--into a one-way street. Buses would still run in both directions, in specific lanes that would be separated from pedestrians by concrete barriers. The plan is intended to give pedestrians more room to navigate, and also to speed up ponderously slow cross-town buses—some of the slowest in the entire city. Travel time for the buses could improve as much as 35 percent.
Riders would be able to pay for their ride before they boarded, and the buses could send a signal that would keep the traffic lights green as they approached an intersection. Cars, however, would not be allowed on the block between 5th and 6th Avenues; they would go westbound from 6th Avenue the West Side Highway, and eastbound from Fifth Avenue to the FDR Drive.
Not surprisingly, many bus riders support the plan, while drivers of cars are less optimistic, fearing that the closures will make their commute even worse.
The project is expected to be finished at the end of 2012, with final designs due next year; it’s expected to cost about $30 million. The plan was first proposed back in 2008; a public hearing was held last week.
The change would significantly alter both the traffic patterns and the layout of the streets in midtown Manhattan.

Love The Plaza, Hate the Lawn Chairs? Your Time Has Come

So we recently reported, fearless readers, on the fact that the pedestrian plaza in New York’s Broadway area is going to stay a pedestrian plaza for the foreseeable future, as per Mayor Bloomberg’s announcement last month. Reaction to the plaza has been mixed—drivers, especially cab drivers, loathe it for the traffic snarls it offers--but many tourists like it and gravitate to the area. In addition, store and restaurant owners in the area are pleased with the extra income derived from curious passersby who stop to shop, eat, and spill over into the areas with tables on nice days. The area is a huge draw with its plethora of theaters and restaurants, huge splashy shops, ranging from the M&M store to Sephora to Toys R US, and its larger-than-life ads and billboards.
One thing pretty much everyone agrees on, however, was that the dingy metal lawn chairs and café tables were an eyesore.
Now, however, the city is launching a design competition (for people who live or work in New York) to redesign the squares in light of the permanent installation in 2010. The competition covers the five pedestrian plazas that stretch from 42nd to 47th Streets along Broadway. Designs are due by April 16, and the winner receives $15,000. Applications are available at wnyc.org. If you’d like to share your ideas with the public at large, you can post them on WNYC's flickr page.
Whether you love or hate the plaza, at least you won’t have to look at the lawn chairs forever.

Yes, Chairs in Times Square Will Be a Permanent State

Love the Pedestrian Mall in New York’s Times Square? Hate it? Completely indifferent to its presence? Well, whatever your feelings, it’s here to stay—at least for the foreseeable future.
An eight-month trial called Greenlight closed 42nd to 47th Streets to traffic. The trial was undertaken to see if getting rid of the three-way intersection where Broadway meets Seventh Avenue would speed up traffic.
Some business, drivers and even pedestrians preferred the old set-up, while many people hailed the plaza and the chance to hang out, read a book, and have lunch, especially during the warmer months.
Mayor Bloomberg announced this past Thursday at a news conference that traffic in the area is down as result of the changes; in addition, he claims that traffic speed increased by approximately seven percent.
(Many people disagree, and say that the function of the plaza is merely to increase tourism to the area, and that traffic flow has not been helped at all. A number of people wander over to see the set-up out of curiosity, and neighborhood restaurants have benefited by being able to send the overflow of customers to the additional outdoor seating.)
Safety conditions also improved, Mayor Bloomberg added, and public response, overall, appears to be favorable; tourists, New Yorkers and businesses were all polled for their reaction.
Now that the plaza is moving into more permanent residency, plans to put in new paving and redesign the space are afoot.