Times Square New Year's Eve Crowds Must Be Vaccinated, City Says

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Locals beware, and tourists get ready: New Year's Eve festivities are returning to full strength in Times Square next month, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday, promising to attract "hundreds of thousands of people" to ring in 2022.

Last year's festivities were nearly unrecognizable due to the coronavirus. With the public barred from gathering, the ball dropped above a nearly empty Times Square.

This year, thanks to the vaccine, authorities are inviting revelers to brave the crowds and cold weather again on Dec. 31. All attendees age five or older will be required to show proof of vaccination and an ID.

"Everyone come on down, we're celebrating," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a news conference Tuesday. "Join the crowd, join the joy, join a historic moment as New York City provides further evidence to the world that we are 100 percent back."

The city hopes the event will contribute to the revitalization of Times Square, which is seen as a bellwether for the rest of the city's recovery along with Midtown as a whole. During Tuesday's news conference, Tom Harris, president of the Times Square Alliance, said that pedestrian traffic in the area has risen by more than 50 percent in recent months — including 270,000 people last Saturday.

"Hundreds of thousands of people there to celebrate," de Blasio said. "It's going to be amazing, it's going to be a joy for the city."