In honor of Earth Day, cars will be banned from a portion of Broadway on April 22. Vehicles won’t be allowed on the stretch from the Flatiron Building (East 23rd Street) down to Union Square (East 17th Street), the New York Daily News reports. City Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, who heads the Transportation Committee, pushed for the ban and is also pushing for a citywide car-free day.
"As New York moves to build more housing, adding density along the way, we literally have no more room for cars," Rodriguez said. Areas around Washington Square Park and Wadsworth Avenue (from 173rd to 177th) in Washington Heights will also see car bans on Earth Day. Lyft will offer discounts that day and free 24-hour Citi Bike passes will be available.
Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of the idea of banning cars from Broadway. In December, architecture firm Perkins Eastman suggested turning a 2.5-mile stretch of the thoroughfare into a park, stretching from about 12th Street to about 53rd Street. It would be called the Green Line and would include some of the side streets around Washington and Madison Square parks, Madison Square Garden, and Times Square.
• Chunk of Broadway going car free for Earth Day from Flatiron Building to Union Square [NYDN]
• Reimagining Broadway as a Pedestrian-Only Public Park [Curbed]