Score one for the Daily News for noticing UN Secretary General transportation habits. During a breakfast with business leaders, Ban said he wanted diplomats to take the subway like Mayor Bloomberg. But Ban himself was driven "the mere eight blocks" with his driver parked illegally in the "No Standing" zone outside the Grand Hyatt.
His spokeswoman told the News, "You say 'illegally parked,' but I'd say 'illegally stopped.'" Ha! She continued, "He did take the car to work. But he has a driver in it at all times, so it's not abandoned on the street. When it needs to be moved, they move it." Well, Gothamist just hopes that if he gets a parking fine, he pays it and sets an example for other diplomats who don't pay up their parking fines. At this point, the UN only apologizes about gridlock it causes during General Assembly. Man, remember when Giuliani got into a fight with the UN back in 1997 over parking tickets? Gooliani said, "I'm not a mayor who is easily threatened, so if they'd like to leave New York over parking tickets, we could find another use for that area of town. It's the most valuable real estate in the world."
Ban's spokeswoman also said he walked to the UN his first day of work. And welcome to the Big Apple, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Photograph of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon eating in the UN cafeteria on his first day of work by Frank Franklin II/AP
