DOT Canal Street Plan Adds Pedestrian Space, Bike Route, But Next Mayor Must Think Bigger - Streetsblog New York City

"Canal Street will get much-needed wider sidewalks and a new bike connections - albeit adjacent - next year, according to a preliminary Department of Transportation proposal obtained by Streetsblog. DOT's plans for the stretch between the Manhattan Bridge and the Hudson River will widen pedestrian areas with so-called "Super Sidewalks" along the busiest parts of the corridor east of Broadway, and officials plan to roll out a new westbound bike lane to join the existing eastbound lane on Grand Street, according to the plans."

"The changes are crucial and will up to the next mayor to execute - and advocates are already calling on the next city leader to think bigger now that congestion pricing has cut car traffic in the area substantially. "This plan is a great step in the right direction, but we need more to prevent cut-through traffic on Canal Street. The next mayor should build on this change and extend the sidewalk with concrete, not just paint," said Ben Furnas, executive director of Transportation Alternatives. The city should also do more to pedestrianize streets around Canal, added Jon Orcutt, a former DOT official under the Bloomberg and de Blasio administrations, who now is the policy and advocacy director at Bike New York. "We need to do something with [congestion pricing]," Orcutt told Streetsblog. "What would meet the moment would be matching it with a bunch of other stuff. We could do pedestrian streets in so much of Manhattan.""

The Department of Transportation proposes widening sidewalks on Canal Street and adding a westbound bike lane adjacent to the existing eastbound lane, covering the corridor between the Manhattan Bridge and the Hudson River. The plan calls for painted "Super Sidewalks" to expand pedestrian areas and shorten crossings along the busiest segments east of Broadway. Officials aim to implement the redesign in July or August next year after a two-year study. Advocates urge stronger actions to prevent cut-through traffic, including concrete sidewalk extensions and broader pedestrianization measures following reductions in car traffic from congestion pricing.

Read at Streetsblog