And here’s the “after”:

In some areas the redesign incorporates “shared street” concepts, eliminating traffic lights and forcing all road users to keep an eye [...]]]> Tom Vanderbilt’s How We Drive blog recently posted some eye-opening photos of street makeovers in the English town of Ashford. Here’s the “before” image for one street:

And here’s the “after”:

In some areas the redesign incorporates “shared street” concepts, eliminating traffic lights and forcing all road users to keep an eye out for each other. According to an Evening Standard columnist (quoted in Vanderbilt’s post), the changeover has reduced the accident injury rate to zero and the elimination of signals has improved travel time for drivers.

Ashford has about 59,000 residents in 6.7 square miles, making it roughly similar in size and population to Bayonne, NJ (another comparison to cities with similar population: Ashford is denser than White Plains and less dense than Mount Vernon, NY).

Members of the Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance took to the Bronx’s Sheridan Expressway during [...]]]>

Clockwise from top left: TSTC's Kyle Wiswall, The Point's Adam Liebowitz, Julien Terrell of Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, SBRWA's Melanie Bin Jung, Nos Quedamos's Anna Vincente, and Joan Byron of the Pratt Center for Community Development.

Members of the Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance took to the Bronx’s Sheridan Expressway during yesterday’s afternoon rush hour and, well, you can see what “rush hour” looks like on the lightly used stub highway. The photo above was taken around 5:30 pm yesterday near 174th St. Alliance members are standing in the Sheridan’s northbound lanes (i.e. the peak direction!).

The gaps in the traffic weren’t quite long enough for a sit-down picnic, which is too bad because the South Bronx is sorely lacking parks and other places for families to recreate and relax. The needs of the area and the light traffic are just two of the many reasons why the Alliance is calling for a teardown of the 1.2-mile Sheridan, and why NYSDOT is studying it. A demapped Sheridan could be replaced not only with open space, but also affordable housing and mixed-use development.

The first photo was no fluke. SBRWA was able to take one group shot after another.

Finally, this should go without saying, but please don’t try this yourself (stunts like this should be performed by trained professional advocates only!).

The Sheridan isn't exactly the BQE at rush hour.

All images via SBRWA. The Alliance also includes Mothers on the Move, Sustainable South Bronx, and the NYC Environmental Justice Alliance.

On Tuesday, ESTA [...]]]> The initial set of MTA hearings on the agency’s “doomsday” plan to raise fares and cut service ended last week (there is one more hearing, scheduled for March 2 in Orange County), but advocates from the Empire State Transportation Alliance and the Campaign for New York’s Future haven’t let up.

On Tuesday, ESTA representatives were again in Albany to meet with state legislators who must vote on the Ravitch Commission’s proposals to fund and reform the MTA. The picture above is from Thursday, when Campaign members continued direct action in Brooklyn subway stations, garnering signatures to send to Gov. David Paterson and members of the State Legislature (add your name here).

Finally, TSTC and the Regional Plan Association (who are members of both ESTA and the Campaign for NY’s Future) held a forum today on how regional bus, one of the Ravitch report’s recommendations, could affect the funding structure and service quality of Westchester’s Bee-Line bus service. The forum brought together mayors and state legislators who will vote on regional bus and whose constituents would be affected by regional bus, the Westchester officials who plan and run bus service, international experts, and many other stakeholders.  Participants generally agreed that a regional bus authority could mean a better funded Westchester bus system that could provide better service, but there were many questions regarding what institutional structure would be most effective. These bus improvements could happen only if the Ravitch Commission’s funding proposals pass the State Legislature.

MTR will have more on the regional bus forum next week. We resume publication on Tuesday.

New Haven officials gave out some traffic-safety-themed goodie bags at a recent meeting attended by TSTC staff and others. TSTC’s bag bore the logo of New Haven’s Street Smarts traffic safety education program, which the city launched in October at around the same time its board of alders passed [...]]]>

(click for larger version.)

New Haven officials gave out some traffic-safety-themed goodie bags at a recent meeting attended by TSTC staff and others. TSTC’s bag bore the logo of New Haven’s Street Smarts traffic safety education program, which the city launched in October at around the same time its board of alders passed complete streets legislation. Inside was a water bottle, decal, flyer, and New Haven’s 2009 calendar, which includes information on Street Smarts in a mayor’s message in the front of the calendar and on the back.

Of course, the city’s actions have spoken louder than any swag. For a good overview of how much progress New Haven has made (and how far it has to go), check out this interview of New Haven Alderwoman and traffic calming champion Erin Sturgis-Pascale by BikePortland’s Elly Blue, a former resident of New Haven. Sturgis-Pascale praised New Haven director of transportation Mike Piscitelli for working with cycling advocates and said that new police chief James Lewis has made a huge difference when it comes to traffic enforcement.

However, Sturgis-Pascale said, bicycles are still “persona non grata” on many roads. Hopefully that’ll change as New Haven continues to spread its Street Smarts message, through swag and other means.