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Old Posted Aug 18, 2009, 3:41 AM
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Cirrus Cirrus is offline
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Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Washington, DC
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New York: Summer Streets, pedestrianized Times Square, & view from the Waldorf's roof

I went to New York this last weekend to see the Park Avenue "Summer Streets" ciclovia and the new pedestrianized Times Square. It was all completely amazing.

The ciclovia:
If you're not aware, on Saturdays in the summer the city closes Park Avenue to cars from Central Park all the way down to the Brooklyn Bridge. It becomes a 6-mile-long bike and ped street.











This is the tunnel passage behind Grand Central. It is normally cars-only.


Coming out of the tunnel. Few pedestrians ever get this view.


Beside Grand Central, on the normally cars-only overpass.




Good luck getting this view any other time.




Tell it, sister.






As you can see, the ciclovia covers a good portion of the length of Manhattan.


There are various repair & rental shops along the way.


At Union Square.


In Lower Manhattan there's no divided boulevard, but the ciclovia goes on.


Word.


True.







Times Square:
The ciclovia on Park is a temporary event, but the city has closed Broadway in Times Square to cars for good. The effect is absolutely stunning. You have to see it to believe it. There are people everywhere. It's unlike anything else in America.













7th Avenue remains open to cars, so it's not a complete pedestrian experience. Nonetheless, whoa.









From the roof of the Waldorf Astoria:

I got a good deal on a room in the Waldorf, so that's where I stayed. At night I went exploring on the 18th floor conference center and found a door to the ledge outside. The 18th floor is where the Waldorf has one of its setbacks, so if you can find the door you get an open-air view of the city.



Oh hai, Empire State Building.






See the bright dot in the upper right, just barely to the left of the building? That would be the planet Jupiter.



Odds and Ends:
Here are some additional leftover pictures. Unrelated things I snapped along the way.

The Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges from a conference room in the NYDOT offices (this was partially a work trip).


Verrazano Narrows, from NYDOT.


The Chrysler Building with Jupiter directly over head.


The new Bank of America skyscraper off on the right.


Interesting.


Union Square.








For some reason I frequently find myself near Astor Place. I love this building.






Last but not least, a view that's either iconic or a cliche. Either way, it's awesome.
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