I do not want to say about air or environmentm, but I suppose that New York and Taipei are totally different cities. New York is traditional western style city and Taipei is similar to Japanese cities. It is hard to say which city is better. In some particular areas, for example public transport. Taipei MRT is one the best MRTs in the world. But you can say that New York has one of the most beautiful skylines in the world. It's really just depended on which point you are looking.
Street vendor is an interesting thing. Most Aisan cities have street vandor. In Taiwan, is night market.
Here is a report I find from internet:
http://www.apsa2005.net/FullPapers/P...%20Deguchi.pdf