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Early Addition
Since Mayor Bloomberg and the DOT have been showing an interest in making the city's streets more inviting to pedestrians and cyclists, advocacy group Transportation Alternatives has decided it's a perfect time to increase pressure on City Hall to make Brooklyn's Prospect Park completely car-free. As it stands now, the hours when drivers are permitted in the park have been whittled down to two hours in the morning and two hours at night on weekdays, during rush hour.
Those hours, however, happen to coincide with the times when most residents can take advantage of the park to exercise before and after work. Wiley Norvell at Transportation Alternatives tells the Sun that his organization is pushing for a three-month, car-free summer in 2009, which he said would give the city the time to study the effects of the street closures on traffic patterns and park usage. "We think it's time. Now it's to the point where the cars are in the park for so few hours that we can't do too much more than go car-free and see what happens," Norvell said.
The group plans to deliver about 7,000 postcards to Bloomberg signed by park users in support of a car-free summer next year. The cards were collected by teens who worked with Transportation Alternatives tracking the speed of cars using the park this summer and found that more than 90% exceeded the speed limit, often by more than 20 miles an hour. And last year a disgruntled park user put together a funny video showing car after car swerving around barricades and entering the park after 7 p.m., when it's supposed to be closed to traffic.
Photo courtesy youthforcarfreeparks.
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There really is absolutely no reason to allow cars into the park, other than perhaps the southeast corner to access the skating rink parking lot. If it cuts down on travel time around the area at all, it is merely a few minutes. The park is extremely crowded with cyclists, runners, horses, skateboarders, and pedestrians during the afternoon hours especially, and cars are an unnecessary danger.
I agree. I bike in the park all the time and have to agree with the stats that 90% of the cars exceed the speed limit. I would even say that some of them are going close to 60mph. As someone that has driven in and around the park a lot in the past, I can honestly say that there is not that much time saved by driving around it.
agreed--with all of the above.
My wife and a majority of the other women in the Prospect Park Softball league use cars to carry equipment for games.
It would be a shame if cars were not allowed into the park. It may be the end of a lot of people being able to be part of the softball league.
I'm sure that all of the softball and baseball leagues will survive. The walk from the outside of the park is not that much further.
There is, I agree, absolutely no reason for cars to be in the park.
However, there is no reason to defer this car ban to next summer. When the days are long (i.e., the summer) it's safe to run or cycle before 7AM or after 7PM, because it's light out, but less so as the days get shorter.
Those of us who use the park regularly also know that these hours are regularly violated, in part because the barrier-movers can't move all the barriers simultaneously and in part because they're more sympathetics to the drivers than to cyclists and bipeds. (I presume many of the park employees need to punch in at 7, considering how they fly towards Litchfield Villa from inside and outside the park shortly before that hour.)
As for the softball players: if they're getting closer to the field than they would be from outside the park, they're probably stopping/parking their cars totally illegally, and doing it during car-free hours at that. I think the women who are powerful enough to play softball can also carry their own equipment.
It's been my observation that when cars are used to transport things to those fields adult beverages are often involved.
ITA with Janet. If they need something to transport their equipment, they can use a cart.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_t?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=cart
#4- There is this thing called a bike trolley. You just put it at the end of your bike and Voila - a little truck to carry things.
#4- here is a site where you can make your own Cargo bicycle trailer for $30.00
http://www.instructables.com/id/Bicycle-cargo-trailer--200-lb-capacity,-$30-for-pa/
if you're playing softball, surely you have the wherewithal to carry a duffle bag of bats and balls from a parking lot to the field. my friends walk from 5th avenue to the fields with no problem.
(I think the parking lots should remain and more semi-permanent barriers should be put in place to stop cars at the entrance. semi-perm to allow for the obvious transport of the enormous equipment nec for the concerts etc.)
Otherwise, there is no reason to drive through the park. and so true, drivers in the park are mostly speeding assholes. i've been run off the road when attempting to get to the left on my bike numerous times.
last Tuesday eve, as i was walking (yes WALKING) to the softball fields, i saw a car bearing down fast and honking loudly at a mother and her kid who were clumsily crossing the street with a tricycle. Yes, the mom was remiss for not picking up the pace before the light changed, but this driver was an ASSSHOLE and caused a potentially fatal situation.
PPW is free and clear of traffic at all times. cars would be better off over there.
is there a new version of softball that requires more than a helmet, glove, and a bat for each person, plus three bases and a plate? how on earth is a car necessary for this?
I hate to look like I'm jumping all over that commenter, but if that's an argument for allowing cars in the park, well, there's really no argument at all, it seems.
"is there a new version of softball that requires more than a helmet, glove, and a bat for each person, plus three bases and a plate?"
seriously.
i agrre completely. just last weekend a friend of mine was nearly hit by a driver unawares of the bicycle traffic around him and turned without care or caution to anyone else. it is also my experience that these drivers are commonly exceeding the speed limit. those seeking to lug sports equipment to the park can find ample parking alongside the roads that border the park.
i mean isn't the view nicer when you walk/jog/bike through the park anyway rather than race through in a car?
Yeah, all sounds good, but how are you going to fight the Chasidim Express from Williamsburgh to Borough Park and Midwood, directly thru the East Drive in the morning and the West Drive in the evening? Just watch those minivans ... sure beats those old Country Squires which were their trademark ...
I wasn't signing the petition. The tree just asked me for my autograph.
I fully agree. My father was run down by a non parks dept.-van who wasn't even following the traffic laws; turning into a parks dept-only area... and broke his wrist so badly he was out of work for 3 months, and couldn't ride his bicycle for 6.
The Chasidim also use the park for recreation. I see lots of parents and their kids on bikes and taking walks at any given moment during the day. I'm sure they would greatly appreciate not being potentially run over by speeding minivans.
Seriously, driving through PP is plain silly. The supposed benefit of saving time is barely more than a minute or two and that's if you're exceeding the speed limit within the park.
I enjoy riding my bike right in the middle of the car lane. When I do, hey presto, suddenly my legs feel tired and I keep a nice 10mph pace. Those fools can honk and gun their engines all they want, they don't have the cajones to run me over.
It's sad that in order to discuss this issue we have to resort to ethnic slurs. Because there are Brooklynites of every race and religious persuasion (there being no discernible Amish here) who believe it a necessity that, the minute you can afford it, you buy a big car which you then drive stupidly and fast.
Agreed with JanetG above.
The park is just for me. Why should other people be considered? I paid big money for my house/condo since I moved here so now the city should make my life better and to hell with everyone else. I mean if your not exercising in the park everyday who cares? Where are all those people in cars going anyway?
What's a job?
Adrocks, the weakest possible justification for permitting cars in the park is that the park loop is a great shortcut. There are plenty of other roads to get you where you're going.
If it's just people who are new to the neighborhood who see room for improvement, not just accepting things as they've always been (and I don't think that's correct) then that's great.
and if the park users were unemployed, the inability to safely exercise during rush hour wouldn't matter, would it?