{"id":656338,"date":"2026-03-15T01:36:47","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T01:36:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/656338\/"},"modified":"2026-03-15T01:36:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T01:36:47","slug":"car-hating-nyc-pol-wants-5-million-square-feet-of-new-pedestrian-space-critics-fear-more-gridlock-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/656338\/","title":{"rendered":"Car-hating NYC pol wants 5 million square feet of new \u2018pedestrian space\u2019 \u2014 critics fear \u2018more gridlock\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"A<\/p>\n

A far-left, car-hating Brooklyn pol is pushing new legislation aimed at bringing 1 million square feet of new “pedestrian space” to the Big Apple annually over the next five years.<\/p>\n

A far-left, car-hating Brooklyn pol is pushing a bill that would create 1 million square feet of new \u201cpedestrian space\u201d to the Big Apple annually over the next five years.<\/p>\n

The legislation,<\/a> introduced Tuesday by Democratic Councilman Lincoln Restler, fails to estimate how many parking spaces and driving lanes would be lost through the scheme \u2014 and city transportation officials couldn\u2019t either.<\/p>\n

However, it would require\u00a0the city Department of Transportation to include Restler\u2019s proposal \u2014 which seeks new pedestrian plazas, curb extensions and other car-free space \u2014 as the agency\u2019s \u201cbenchmark\u201d in its next five-year \u201cStreets Master Plan\u201d due in December.<\/p>\n

It would also require the DOT and Mayor Mamdani to \u201cprioritize\u201d new pedestrian space near bus stops and subway stations with the \u201chighest rates of pedestrian traffic\u201d like Manhattan\u2019s Herald Square and Brooklyn\u2019s Barclays Center.<\/p>\n

\"NYC<\/p>\n

NYC Councilman Lincoln Restler (D-Brooklyn) speaking at January rally with NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani (third from left) and other far lefties looking on. Micheal Nagle for NY Post<\/p>\n

\u201cThis would be adding more open streets, adding more public plazas, adding more \u2018daylighting\u2019 [banned parking near crosswalks], so that we all have the necessary pedestrian space we need to get around,\u201d Restler told DOT officials March 3 while pitching his plan during a Council transportation committee hearing.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a New Yorker, I don\u2019t think there is anything more frustrating than being stuck behind a slow-walking person, and it often happens in these highly congested areas because we just don\u2019t have enough space for all of us to get around,\u201d barked Restler, who reps Williamsburg, Greenpoint and other bike-friendly communities.<\/p>\n

The bill is already drawing plenty of heat from critics.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is yet another favor for the anti-car lobby that will make life harder for residents of the outer boroughs,\u201d said Councilwoman Joann Ariola (R-Queens).<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of my colleagues are under the delusion that the whole city has the public transportation options of Park Slope, and that everyone can ride a bike everywhere in any weather,\u201d added the councilwoman, who represents much of The Rockaways, Howard Beach and other \u201ctransit deserts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wholeheartedly invite them to look beyond their bubbles and come back to reality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lincoln<\/p>\n

Lincoln Restler, a far-left, car-hating Brooklyn pol, is pushing new legislation aimed at bringing 1 million square feet of new \u201cpedestrian space\u201d to the Big Apple annually over the next five years, potentially even a redesigned Fifth Avenue in Midtown. City Hall<\/p>\n

Sandy Reiburn, a Brooklyn resident and longtime critic of the DOT\u2019s controversial \u201cOpen Streets\u201d program,<\/a> said the legislation would only bring New York City \u201cmore gridlock.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStreets aren\u2019t decorative space\u2014they\u2019re the arteries of commerce, emergency access, and mobility,\u201d Reiburn said.<\/p>\n

\u201cRestler\u2019s plan treats streets like empty real estate, but for seniors, paratransit users and the disabled, a curb isn\u2019t optional \u2014 it\u2019s access. Wiping out roadways wipes out the ability to pick people up where they actually need to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

The DOT \u2013 which oversees 93 public plazas totaling about 2 million square feet \u2014 has added nearly 500,000 square feet of pedestrian space annually the past four years.<\/p>\n

The agency\u2019s previous five-year plan fell short of meeting targeted goals like building 150 miles of protected bike lanes and 250 miles of protected bus lanes by the end of 2025.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The legislation, introduced Tuesday by Democratic Councilman Lincoln Restler, fails to estimate how many parking spaces, roads and car lanes could be lost in favor of pedestrian space \u2014 and city transportation officials couldn\u2019t either. City Hall<\/p>\n

\u201cWalking is the primary way that we all get around as New Yorkers,\u201d said Restler, who notoriously has championed to reduce curbside parking and other policies prioritizing pedestrians, cyclists, and public-transit riders over drivers. \u201cAnd frankly, the city does far too little to ensure that we have adequate pedestrian space across our communities, especially in the most congested areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn, a Mamdani appointee,<\/a> all but said the agency has no desire put the brakes on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs demand for pedestrian space increases, we are responding by expanding opportunities that prioritize pedestrians at the block, corridor, or district-wide scale,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are also developing some exciting new programs and commitments on this topic that we intend to incorporate into the upcoming new Streets Plan. \u201cWe look forward to ongoing conversations with the Council to identify initiatives that meet our shared goal to increase pedestrian space citywide.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A far-left, car-hating Brooklyn pol is pushing new legislation aimed at bringing 1 million square feet of new…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":656339,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,278136,149604,5708,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,145925,278137,278138,138091,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-656338","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-city-transportation-officials","10":"tag-lincoln-restler","11":"tag-mamdani","12":"tag-new-york","13":"tag-new-york-city","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkcity","16":"tag-ny","17":"tag-nyc","18":"tag-pedestrian-plazas","19":"tag-pedestrian-traffic","20":"tag-public-plazas","21":"tag-square-feet","22":"tag-united-states","23":"tag-united-states-of-america","24":"tag-unitedstates","25":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","26":"tag-us","27":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116230631567924627","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=656338"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656338\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/656339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=656338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=656338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=656338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}