If Detroit represents one end of America’s urban spectrum, here’s the other:
Jeff Prant reports on the spectacular success of a pedestrianized Times Square:
People have voted with their feet. Despite the economic downturn and a citywide decrease in tourism of 5 percent in 2009, the Times Square Alliance reports that more people than ever visited the Square last year. According to the Alliance, roughly 500,000 people now visit Times Square in an average day….
Previous to the ban on autos, no more than 20 moving vehicles could fit on each of those same blocks. And rather than those relatively few motorists who merely passed through the space without fully appreciating it, we now accommodate many more people who choose it as a destination. It now functions as a linear park, a civilized place for walking, meeting, conversing, relaxing, observing. If one chooses to, you can even hear yourself think. And it’s all free.
Granville Street anyone? If they can do it there, why not here?