Your city or town's most well known or busiest street?

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Well the question is "your town's most well known or busiest street". I find it hard to believe that there are people who visit New York and walk away thinking that Park Avenue is very relevant. And for New Yorkers, 34th and 42nd are obviously prominent since nearly every subway line in the city stops at those two streets.

34th, busy? Definitely. Lots of basic low-to mid-tier retail, commuter / pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

Park Ave: more well-known / popular to those outside of NYC. It represents NYC opulence at its finest., from a global perspective.

[streetscaper]

I agree that Park and Madison might be a bit more 'heard of" or maybe well known.


but I'm integrating both parameters asked for by the OP, and not just one (which is also fine and interesting to do).


The other outer borough streets in iheartthed's list also aren't the most opulent from a global perspective, but they perfectly fit what the OP was asking for. plain and simple.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

why are we even talking about 34st?

for ny 34st is number five at best.

Agree from the perspective that it's certainly very busy, yet oddly not very well-known beyond the tri-state.

Originally Posted by mrnyc

broadway, fifth ave, madison and wall all rank above it in common knowledge of off the top of your head major ny streets for both new yorkers and non-new yorkers alike.

wall is an interesting case. imo, its more of a pop culture / media metaphor than an actual "street", even from a global perspective.

Originally Posted by mrnyc

34st is in a battle with 42nd st for fifth place.

Perhaps in terms of busy-ness / traffic, but not in terms of popularity. 42nd street wins there, hands-down.

Originally Posted by mrnyc

and one two five and park ave are tapping their fingers on the table. these are all out of the money though.

again, after broadway and fifth ave, Madison and park are the 3rd and 4th most-popular, respectively. the other avenues don't even come close, and 34th street is very busy but not well known outside of nyc IMO.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

34th, busy? Definitely. Lots of basic low-to mid-tier retail, commuter / pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

Park Ave: more well-known / popular to those outside of NYC. It represents NYC opulence at its finest., from a global perspective.

I agree that people know the name Park Avenue, but it's not a popular place. If I didn't know New York, I would think Park Avenue is more relevant than it is in reality. Most of it is lined with non-descript residential apartment buildings, so I don't see why a tourist would find it interesting. Kinda baffled that this is a controversial point.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

If I didn't know New York, I would think Park Avenue is more relevant than it is in reality.

Which, by definition, makes it more popular than 34th street, which (along with which is more busy, in which case the answer is 34th) was the question posed by the OP.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

Which, by definition, makes it more popular than 34th street, which (along with which is more busy, in which case the answer is 34th) was the question posed by the OP.

Pretty sure the OP is asking for us to provide insight. Saying that most people who have never come to NYC know Park Avenue does not provide insight.

[JAYNYC]

re: Park ave vs 34th st in NYC:

it's arguably the equivalent of Hollywood Blvd (or possibly Sunset) vs. Wilshire in LA. The former are much more well-known globally, while the latter less-popular yet substantially busier and more important to commuters / pedestrians.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Pretty sure the OP is asking for us to provide insight. Saying that most people who have never come to NYC know Park Avenue does not provide insight.

Re-read the OP's post and literally nowhere does it reference the "insight" you're "pretty sure" they asked for.

Originally Posted by Dariusb

What's your city or town's most well known or busiest street?

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

34st is in a battle with 42nd st for fifth place. and one two five and park ave are tapping their fingers on the table. these are all out of the money though.

42nd Street is much more widely known and busier than 34th.

From east to west, 42nd just has more anchors and activity... UN to Grand Central to to Library/Bryant Park to heart of Times Square to Broadway/Off-Broadway Theaters to Port Authority and Lincoln Tunnel to the Circle Line... from river to river.

The street name itself is famous as "the Deuce"... you guys old enough to remember the '80s? Beastie Boys? Kurtis Blow? I mean, it's been in a bunch of songs over the years. 42nd Street has been a part of American urban pop culture for a century. "42nd Street" is one of the biggest Broadway musicals ever. There's even an HBO show about it The Deuce.

I could be wrong, but other than Miracle on 34th Street, I know of no other cultural references to that street.

Originally Posted by iheartthed

It's well known to anyone who has ever visited the city. If you've ever been to NYC, you've planted a foot on 34th St. Park Avenue is like a sleepy village compared to it.

I lived in NYC from 1999 to 2008 (Manhattan from 2001 to 2008), so I'm pretty familiar. From Fifth Ave to 8th Ave it's very busy. But that's pretty much it. Definitely busier than Park Ave... but everyone knows Park Ave. So much so that the name is basically an adjective... and proxy for high class, for luxury, for success, for wealth... I mean, even Buick named their luxury car after it.

Chrysler had a Fifth Avenue. Madison Ave is proxy for the advertising industry... Mad Men, anyone? 42nd Street was synonymous with vice throughout NYC history. Wall St., Broadway... no words needed.

Trying to come up with something for 34th Street... but drawing a big blank here.

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by pj3000

Trying to come up with something for 34th Street... but drawing a big blank here.

Miracle on 34th Street

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

Miracle on 34th Street

That's proxy for something?


And anyway, jesus h christ, look up a few lines to read I could be wrong, but other than Miracle on 34th Street, I know of no other cultural references to that street."

[mrnyc]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Well the question is "your town's most well known or busiest street". I find it hard to believe that there are people who visit New York and walk away thinking that Park Avenue is very relevant. And for New Yorkers, 34th and 42nd are obviously prominent since nearly every subway line in the city stops at those two streets.

yeah the question -- that's why i find it hard to believe you are lasered on those clearly out of the race streets and are choosing to ignore the four that are way out in front in the game. i mean i certainly knew about the champs before i ever saw paris. sure there are more civically important important streets in paris, but. so i would guess you are also forgetting the vast majority of people who have never visited ny and never will, but if asked would name those other streets first.

also, i take you are too young to know about green acres
https://youtu.be/umS3XM3xAPk

[mrnyc]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

Agree from the perspective that it's certainly very busy, yet oddly not very well-known beyond the tri-state.

the problem with busy is that gets you the deagan and the belt parkway.

[Link]

my town's busy area has only small streets so it gets congested. but its mostly public transportation, taxis and delivery vehicles

most people commute in my town by rail or bus

[Razor]

Originally Posted by LA21st

That stuff is there , but the Sunset Strip has a more corporate and upscale feel to it now. Still more trendy than other cities, but its not as crazy at it used to be. SilverLake/Echo Park/Hollywood have probably taken that scene away.

Cool..Thank you, as well as everyone else for answering.

[Darkoshvilli]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I don't live in Montreal but I know it well and it's close enough.

The unchallenged number one street is Sainte-Catherine.

Honourable mentions go to Saint-Denis, Saint-Laurent and Sherbrooke.

Honorable mention goes to rue St Paul as the cities main tourist trap.

[BillM]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

Re-read the OP's post and literally nowhere does it reference the "insight" you're "pretty sure" they asked for.

I was just trying to ponder the value of a discussion forum (or thread) that didn't encourage insight.

Based on the scope of a city like New York, answers will vary.

[Razor]

If your city won a championship, then the parade route is that street.

[homebucket]

Originally Posted by Razor

If your city won a championship, then that's your street I'm thinking. Any parade route really.

For SF, that'd be Market St.

[homebucket]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

One of the most famous Christmas movies of all time is named for it. It is definitely well known.

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

How silly of me to question 34th Street's popularity beyond NYC when a film released in 1947 mentioned it in its title. I stand corrected - thank you for stating what should have been obvious to me.

I don't know NYC well enough to know which streets are the busiest, but if we're just talking about well known, this question is probably best answered by outsiders, since more people live outside of their city than in it.

Taking that into account, I am 100% sure that 34th Street is not as well known as some of the others that have been listed, like 5th Ave, Park, Wall, Madison, and Broadway.