Sections Of Broadway To Become Open Streets This Week, Mayor Says

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Cars will be banned from three stretches of Broadway this week as the city Department of Transportation works to open dozens of miles of streets to pedestrians to aid with social distancing, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday.

Broadway will be opened up from West 21st to 23rd Streets, West 25th to 28th Streets and West 36th to 41st Streets starting Thursday, city officials said. Local business improvement districts will work with the city to ensure that the open streets are safe for pedestrians and cyclists.

"An open Broadway will provide New Yorkers much-needed space to walk and bike with room to safely spread out and social distance through the heart of Flatiron and NoMad. Additionally, it's critical that we continue to consider new and creative approaches to business district management and the responsible use of the public realm, like Open Streets, to aid our city’s economic recovery from COVID-19," James Mettham, Executive Director of the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership said in a statement.

The city is pedestrianizing 40 miles of streets across the five boroughs this month, with the eventual goal to open as much as 100 miles of streets to help New Yorkers spend time outdoors while remaining at a safe distance from others. Mayor Bill de Blasio reached an agreement on open streets with the City Council — which was pushing a plan to force the city to pedestrianize streets — in late April.

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer proposed banning cars on Broadway from Union Square to Central Park in April. The plan was endorsed by Community Board 5, which represents a district that includes that entire stretch of Broadway.

The city Department of Transportation began opening streets across the five boroughs on Monday. The first round of openings focused on roads inside parks and adjacent to parks to help reduce overcrowding of the green spaces. The second round, which includes the stretches of Broadway, seems to focus on neighborhood streets that see a lot of foot traffic. Other streets being pedestrianized Tuesday include Willoughby Street in Downtown Brooklyn, Orchard Street on the Lower East Side and 34th Avenue in Jackson heights.

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