Redesigned Blocks Of Broadway Are Celebrated In Midtown

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Officials on Monday celebrated the addition of pedestrian space to two stretches of Broadway, bringing the city closer to its goal of redesigning a dozen blocks of the Manhattan thoroughfare.

Mayor Bill de Blasio joined other officials to cut the ribbon Monday at the new "shared street" in Flatiron between 22nd and 23rd streets.

The new space converted car traffic lanes to pedestrian areas that feature vendors, outdoor dining and art installations. A protected bike lane runs alongside the open space, and vehicles, while still having access, are now slowed to 5 miles per hour.

About 18 times more pedestrians than cars use those two blocks of Broadway, according to the city, and the new shared street is Manhattan's largest.

"A shared street means we focus on each other, we focus on life," de Blasio said. "Not just making everything about the vehicles around us, but more about the people around us."

Flatiron’s new ‘Slow Street’ from 21st to 23rd redesigned the Broadway stretch to 5 mph vehicular speed limit to encourage pedestrian safety and expand plaza space for all New Yorkers to enjoy. 🚴🚶🏃🤸 pic.twitter.com/qoXcGVHNt1
— Flatiron, New York (@FlatironNY) October 25, 2021

The city also noted the completion of a pedestrian-only plaza from 39th to 40th streets in the Garment District, which opened in August as the first fully pedestrianized block in the area. Meanwhile, shared streets similar to the Flatiron one have opened from 38th to 39th and 48th to 50th streets.

The city's Broadway Vision plan calls for 12 blocks to be remade into shared streets — of which six have now been completed. While welcomed by safe-streets advocates, the projects still stop well short of some groups' demands to eliminate cars on long stretches of Broadway.