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Google Street View's look at the "bow-tie"
New Yorkers, fed up with drivers zipping up and down Broadway at breakneck speeds, have demanded a gentler, calmer Upper West Side, and one politician is more than happy to oblige. Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal has proposed placing speed bumps, or new signage, at the Amsterdam-Broadway "bow tie" (the intersection where Amsterdam crosses over the north and southbound lanes of Broadway on 71st Street—the one where a taxi cab drove into a subway station) to slow traffic down, reports WCBS 2.
The area is considered by some to be the epicenter of a pedestrian nightmare. "You never know when to cross because there's cars coming from three different directions," Betsy Alpert told WCBS 2. "So you kinda like wait for the light to say walk and then run!"
But not everyone feels empathy for amblers and bicyclists. One woman sniffed, "Making it safer for them? They're already supposed to know what they can do and what they can't do. A lot of times when a cyclist gets hit it's his own fault."
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"A lot of times when a cyclist gets hit it's his own fault"
Word.
Whats the over/under for comments on this one?
45?
With so much talk about Williamsburg, I have forgotten the UWS even exists.
The same goes for me.
a lot of the times people don't know what they're talking about
"So you kinda like wait for the light to say walk and then run"
Waiting for the walk signal is a good idea. Any other time you are just retarded.
Tourist
are you a tourist, you asshole?
don't stop at the curb just because the sign says "dont walk" if you're clear to go. you're holding up traffic -- some people have jobs and places to go
That's why you deserve to be nailed. I'm definitely not gonna slam on my brakes for your sorry ass.
you couldn't hit me if you tried.
There are already devices in place to achieve a reasonable traffic situation. They're called lights, signs and traffic laws. That people, whether they be pedestrians, bicyclists or drivers, flout them is not a failure of the system, but of people. Adding more inanimate objects won't correct human flaws.
Some inanimate objects can correct human flaws.
The speed bumps would slow down the kamikaze drivers. We need more automatic cameras to record cars running through red lights. The metal structures and concrete railings discourage cars from jumping the curb. And as much as I hate to say it, the steel railings in Midtown keep the pedestrians from crossing avenues in the middle of the block like they use to.
test
It looks intimidating, but that intersection really isn't that bad if you use the crosswalks. The lights are timed so you can cross safely.
That's some pretty good cheap publicity for this assemblywoman. She proposes some speed bumps and signs -- things she can't deliver in her position -- and she gets all over the news.
She took a page out of the northeastern Queens politician's playbook... when your district doesn't suffer from any serious crime or tour chopper crashes or anything substantive to complain about, you start demanding speed bumps and traffic lights at every intersection.
Overall, it's a pretty messy intersection—it's much easier to cross Bway and Amsterdam on the north crosswalk, vs. the southern one. But there's really no way to cross to the other side during one light—you usually need to wait at the median for another green light to make it.
It's easy to cross during one light when going across 71st st, but not 72nd street, unless you are VERY fast.
when everyone learns to follow rules/ signs then everything will be alright!
http://www.craigspr.org
that's not a website about rules/signs
. . .
Drivers treat upper Broadway like it's some kind of highway -- more enforcement of speed regulations is called for. But I think speed bumps would be scary -- these morons would just fly over them and lose control.
Hit the speed bumps fast enough and your cab or bus might just fly over the intersection entirely. Stay above 50.
Wouldn't speed bumps just launch cars instead of slow them down?
in any case, I always thought the railing on the island was too old and whimpy to really offer any protection. The recent accident has proved my instinct correct.
"Wouldn't speed bumps just launch cars instead of slow them down?"
Traffic engineers stopped using speed bumps years ago. Only clueless politicians advocate them now. And Staten Island DIYers, or course.
Wow! As a cyclist it's appauling to hear statements like, "Making it safer for them? They're already supposed to know what they can do and what they can't do. A lot of times when a cyclist gets hit it's his own fault." Somehow I'm still surprised how shitty people can be. I hope something is done to make this intersection safer.
Speed humps that are much smoother and allow vehicles to move over them at 25-30 mph might be a better solution but guess who gets angry at the thought? Cops and firefighters that want to move as fast as THEY can.
Westside Independent broke this story last week.
http://westsideindependent.com/2009/10/08/speed-bumps-on-broadway/
As someone who lives here and crosses through this intersection multiple times a day, I agree something needs to be done. Cars come up those avenues way too fast, and while yes, pedestrian stupidity is a part in creating dangerous conditions here, high speeds and light running are the main culprit. Speed humps though? I can just see cabs hitting a hump at 45mph and hurling themselves into waiting peds...