231 Posts by: Clarence Eckerson, Jr.

Mr. Blumenauer goes to New York City to ride bikes

It's not everyday that you get to ride bikes in a big metropolis with a member of Congress, even one who loves to bicycle whenever he can.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer dropped by Transportation Alternatives' offices to take a quick excursion around mid-town with Executive Director, Paul Steely White, and Senior Policy Director, Noah Budnick. They checked [...]

Streetfilms is sporting a new ‘do!

It's been a long time coming, but Streetfilms finally has a new look that we hope will help visitors find more of their favorite films (check out fun rotating categories like, "Ciclovia Explosion!") and ultimately watch more movies and spread the love amongst your fellow advocates.
The first change you'll probably notice: our home page now [...]

Drivers Behaving Rudely

Just because there's a livable streets revolution underway in NYC doesn't mean that drivers have gotten the message. Cars blocking crosswalks, drivers failing to yield to pedestrians, unnecessary honking and a slew of other quality-of-walking violations are still a routine occurrence to contend with on nearly every corner of New York City.
Mark Gorton, publisher [...]

Walk21 NYC: World Pedestrian Leaders Take Manhattan

With all the recent, remarkable livable streets improvements to the streets of New York City, it's no surprise the 10th annual, Walk21 Conference chose us for its host digs. Visitors and attendees were treated to a cornucopia of pedestrian street infrastructure to salivate over and debate; including tours of the recently opened High Line [...]

Sands Street Gets a Sassy, Center-Median Cycletrack

Chalk up more bikeway innovation to the folks at the NYC Department of Transportation. The Sands Street approach to the Manhattan Bridge is now safer and more enjoyable thanks to a first-of-its-kind in NYC: a center-median, two-way, protected bike path.

PARKing Day 2009 NYC

This year we took it down a notch. After covering PARK(ing) Day events for the past three years, we figured it was about time we got to relax a little and enjoy the space and - frankly - not get dehydrated from bicycling about all day. Oh, that and the fact we were [...]

“The Pedestrian Crush” on 34th & 7th Avenue

Although there is undoubtedly an amazing streets renaissance going on in NYC, there still remain places in dire need of improvement.  Heavily-used areas like the blocks surrounding Penn Station area from 4 to 7 PM on weekdays are overwhelmed with pedestrians making their way home to via a network of subways, NJ Transit, the Long [...]

The Search for the Zozo

Thanks to a marked improvement for pedestrians and cyclists in public spaces in NYC, Zozo's - purple, pleasant creatures who once roamed NYC's streets before the presence of the automobile but thought now extinct - are making a comeback. Watch our mockumentary as we go in search of the ever-elusive Zozo! Will we find it?

In Memoriam: James Langergaard, Bike Philosopher

On Friday night, August 14th, James Langergaard was killed by a car crossing Queens Boulevard. According to his family, witnesses told police that James ran a red light on his bike and died instantly. James was 38.

Carmaggeddon Averted as Broadway Comes to Life

When New York City opened up new pedestrian zones in the heart of Midtown this summer, naysayers predicted a traffic nightmare. Nearly two months later, we're still waiting for the much-feared Carmaggedon.