Restaurants Gobbled Up Business On NYC’s ‘Open Streets,’ Study Finds

NEW YORK CITY — A car-free street could be the hottest item on New York City’s dining scene menu, according to a new study.

Restaurants on “Open Streets” thrived during the coronavirus pandemic compared to their neighbors on vehicle-filled corridors, a study by the city’s Department of Transportation found.

The study — “Streets For Recovery” — found car-free streets had average sales 19 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels, while nearby corridor with traditional traffic were 29 percent below. Car-free streets also had more bars and restaurants open during the pandemic, it found.

“This report echoes what we have heard in communities across the city: Opening our streets can kickstart small businesses, create jobs, and lift up neighborhoods,” Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.

Open Streets and an associated outdoor dining program — Open Restaurants — have proved both popular and controversial among New Yorkers since city officials launched them amid COVID-19 restrictions in 2020.

Restaurateurs saw them as a crucial lifeline when lockdowns kept New Yorkers from indoor dining rooms, while advocates cheered steps toward devoting street space toward people, rather than cars.

But some neighborhood residents groused about losing parking spaces, noise and derelict dining sheds they claimed drew rats.

City officials have taken steps to make both Open Streets and Open Restaurants permanent, but how they’ll look in the future is somewhat murky.

Many City Council members prefer outdoor dining to run only in warmer months, while Mayor Eric Adams and advocates favor a year-round program under the Department of Transportation’s umbrella, Streetsblog reported.

But the study indicates that the business benefits of car-free streets could outweigh the complaints.

Researchers with Bloomberg Associates, who worked with the city on the study, looked at five Open Streets corridors in Astoria, Chinatown, Koreatown, Park Slope and Prospect Heights. They found clear differences between nearby vehicle-filled corridors.

Open Streets had 10 percent increase in new bars and restaurants, while other “control” corridors saw them drop 20 percent, according to the study.

Read the full study here.