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In 1927, NYC Almost Got a 16-Mile Highway Along Building Rooftops
April 1, 2016

In 1927, NYC Almost Got a 16-Mile Highway Along Building Rooftops

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In the early 20th century, engineers and architects were certainly thinking outside the box when it came to city planning here in New York. There was the proposal to fill in the Hudson River for traffic and housing, the idea to create a giant conveyor belt to carry people between Grand Central and Times Square, and the plan to stack the city like a layered cake. Though these ideas sound whacky, they were born from the rise of the automobile and suburbinization. With many Americans moving out of urban centers, planners sought new ways to reimagine the modern city and entice car-loving prospects. Another such idea is this 1927 one for a 16-mile elevated highway that would have traveled across building rooftops from the Battery all the way to Yonkers. Conceived by engineer John K. Hencken, it required all buildings to be uniform at 12 stories. Within them would have been standard uses -- residences, offices, schools, theaters, restaurants -- and elevators to take cars from the street to the skyway.
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The Official 2016 NYC Bike Map Has Arrived
March 29, 2016

The Official 2016 NYC Bike Map Has Arrived

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The Department of Transportation just released the downloadable 2016 New York City Bike Map ahead of a paper version due next month. This year's map shows 70 miles of new or "upgraded" bike-specific lanes, twelve of which are protected (physically separated from auto traffic). Also on the map are seven miles of newly-created off-street bike lanes.
Check out the map
It Will Cost $3M to Repair Hudson Yards Train Station, Six Months After Opening
March 22, 2016

It Will Cost $3M to Repair Hudson Yards Train Station, Six Months After Opening

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The Post reported last week that the Hudson Yards 7-train subway station, which opened just this past September after more than ten years of planning and delays, was a "disgusting, moldy mess," noting that "leaks, flooded bathrooms and water damage" had put nearly half the escalators out of service. According to a plumber, it's due to poor construction, with the ceilings not being made waterproof. If this wasn't disturbing enough, especially considering the station's $2.45 billion price tag, the Times has new information straight from the MTA: "A spokesman for the authority, Kevin Ortiz, said the contractor, Yonkers Contracting, would pay $3 million to fix the leaks. The work began last Friday and will take up to three months, Mr. Ortiz said."
Get a look at the damage
MTA Reveals Its ‘Ferrari-Like’ Buses With WiFi and Charging Ports
March 9, 2016

MTA Reveals Its ‘Ferrari-Like’ Buses With WiFi and Charging Ports

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Earlier in the year, Governor Cuomo announced a plan to transform the subway with free WiFi, USB chargers, and mobile payment. Though the idea sounded great in theory, skeptics were quick to question where the funding would come from, a sentiment echoed now that the MTA has revealed renderings and details for the 2,042 new buses that will come on board over the next five years. They'll include similar modernizations, including WiFi, between 35 and 55 USB charging ports, and two or three LCD information screens, according to Crain's. The Governor touted the new bus design -- "It has that European flair to it. It has almost a Ferrari-like look." -- but he still hasn't spoken about how the state will fund the MTA's five-year capital plan.
Just how much will the new bus fleet cost?
The Lost Subway Line of the 1939-1940 World’s Fair

World’s Fair Terminal Station. Photo via Bill Cotter 

March 8, 2016

The Lost Subway Line of the 1939-1940 World’s Fair

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There was, for a short time, a line of the IND (Independent) subway that was built for the 1939/1940 World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, the second most expansive American world's fair of all time (second only to the St. Louis Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904). The event brought over 44 million people to the Flushing Meadows-Corona Park site. To make visting the fair more convenient, the city created a new dedicated subway line extension and terminal, then the only line owned by the city. The extension began on a bridge (called a flying junction) running through Jamaica Yard near what is now the Forest Hills-71st Street stop on today's M/R lines. The extension turned north along the east side of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park over a wooden trestle and ended at the newly-created World’s Fair Terminal Station, which had two tracks and three platforms. The two-mile addition cost $1.7 million to build.
Find out what happened
Subspotting Map Project Shows Where You Can Get Phone Reception in the Subway
March 7, 2016

Subspotting Map Project Shows Where You Can Get Phone Reception in the Subway

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The MTA is apparently well into the middle phase of its project to wire 279 below-ground subway stations with cell reception, but as Citylab recently put it, "there are still places you can’t make a call to save your life.” Into this unfortunate void comes the Subspotting project, brainchild of Daniel Goddemeyer and Dominikus Baur, which offers maps "illustrating the unequal geography of subway reception" and helpfully providing information on where you'll be able to make a call or send a text while in transit. In addition to system and individual line maps, there's an app that shows the quality of reception as different sized bars at each station, and MTA-sanctioned posters.
Can you hear me now?
Port Authority Will Hold Opening Ceremony for WTC Transportation Hub After All

Santiago Calatrava: WTC Transportation Hub , New York (Photo: Mega Projects and Skyscrapers, via YouTube)

February 26, 2016

Port Authority Will Hold Opening Ceremony for WTC Transportation Hub After All

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On Tuesday, news broke that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey would not be holding a ribbon cutting ceremony when the World Trade Center Transportation Hub opens next week. They called Santiago Calatrava's project "a symbol of excess." Perhaps feeling the backlash from their decision, the agency sent out a press release yesterday saying that though there will still be no event to mark the opening on March 3rd at 3pm, they will hold a ceremony once the Hub is fully up and running this spring, according to the Wall Street Journal. They credit their change of heart to a desire to thank the thousands of workers who built the station. Additionally, Port Authority Chairman John Degnan said, "It will stand, along with the memorial, museum and the buildings themselves, as a tribute the resiliency of the region."
More this way
City Filth, Decoded: The Gunk on Subway Platforms Actually Has a Name

Image: Xymox/Flickr

February 24, 2016

City Filth, Decoded: The Gunk on Subway Platforms Actually Has a Name

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Do you ever wonder what that black schmutz that collects on the subway platform is? Has all the discarded chewing gum in the world begun to mobilize? What if I put my bag on it? Slate's What's That Thing column appropriately examines the phenomenon: After repeated unreturned phone calls to the MTA, the intrepid journalists got "Gridlock Sam" Schwartz and his transit gurus on the case. Finally the fine folks from the MTA rallied and gave name to the mysterious muck. According to NYC Transit assistant chief of the Division of Stations Branko Kleva, the stuff is mastic, a tar-like substance used to seal and waterproof the subway tunnels. When it heats up, (in the summer, for example, ironically from the heat generated by subway car air conditioning) it starts to "flow and drip down from the roof of the tunnel onto the platforms below."
More on the mysterious gunk...
How Far From NYC You Could Travel in One Day Between 1800 and 1934
February 24, 2016

How Far From NYC You Could Travel in One Day Between 1800 and 1934

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Back in 1800, a New York stagecoach couldn't get outside the northeast, and a trip to Charleston, South Carolina took ten whole days of sailing—these are just two examples of just how arduous traveling in the 19th and early 20th centuries was. To visualize this difficulty, as well as to show the major advances made over a relatively short time, Quartz created this simple map that shows how far from NYC one could travel in a day between 1800 and 1934.
More on the map
Poll: Do You Agree With the Decision to Forego a Ribbon Cutting for WTC Transportation Hub?
February 24, 2016

Poll: Do You Agree With the Decision to Forego a Ribbon Cutting for WTC Transportation Hub?

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Yesterday the Port Authority announced that they won’t be holding a ribbon cutting ceremony (or any type of celebratory event, for that matter) to mark the opening of Santiago Calatrava’s World Trade Center Transportation Hub next month. They called the Hub “a symbol of excess” and cited the exorbitant $4 billion price tag as the […]

There Will Be No Ribbon Cutting for the WTC Transportation Hub Opening

Santiago Calatrava: WTC Transportation Hub , New York (Photo: Mega Projects and Skyscrapers, via YouTube)

February 23, 2016

There Will Be No Ribbon Cutting for the WTC Transportation Hub Opening

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When the subject of Santiago Calatrava's World Trade Center Transportation Hub comes up, what's most likely to come to mind is not the flying-bird-looking architecture, but the fact that it was so incredibly delayed (it’s six years off schedule) and over-budget (final construction costs ring in around $4 billion in taxpayer dollars, twice what was projected, making it the world’s most expensive train station). The latter is not sitting well with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who oversee the hub, as they've announced that they will not host an event to mark the opening during the first week of March, calling it "a symbol of excess," according to Politico. Similarly, Governors Christie and Cuomo, who control the agency, have declined to commemorate the opening.
Get the scoop
Minimalist Subway Map Posters Are More About Beautiful Design Than Finding Your Way
February 23, 2016

Minimalist Subway Map Posters Are More About Beautiful Design Than Finding Your Way

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Cartographer Andrew Lynch has spent a lot of time looking at the NYC subway system. The CUNY Hunter alum recently perfected the entire system in a series of hypothetical but geographically accurate "Future NYC Subway" maps. But while studying the paths of the city's most important people mover, Lynch noticed they looked rather lovely, but just too, well, cluttered. From this thought came a series of colorful minimalist subway line posters (h/t CityLab) that Lynch calls "totally accurate, totally useless," but nice to look at nonetheless.
Get your own, this way
‘Fatal Flaw Analysis’ Says Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Could Require Two New Bridges
February 22, 2016

‘Fatal Flaw Analysis’ Says Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Could Require Two New Bridges

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The proposed Brooklyn-Queens Connector (BQX) streetcar may require the construction of two new bridges, one over Newtown Creek and another over the Gowanus Canal. The New York Times reported that the potential need for the new bridges–the Pulaski Bridge and the bridge across the Gowanus Canal at Hamilton Avenue might not be able to accommodate streetcars–was one of the more substantial details released by Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen and other top officials Friday. In a "fatal-flaw analysis," it was found that that though there would be "major challenges" to creating the system, it was feasible, Ms. Glen said. Like all things New York City, the proposed BQX proposal "would dwarf other recent streetcar systems in the United States." The cost involved in constructing the new bridges is already included in the project's $2.5 billion cost estimate. They would include bicycle and pedestrian paths.
Find out more
Dream Subway Map Includes a 10th Avenue Subway and a PATH to Staten Island
February 19, 2016

Dream Subway Map Includes a 10th Avenue Subway and a PATH to Staten Island

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For most New Yorkers, subway dreams are simple things like trains arriving on time and getting a seat, but cartographer Andrew Lynch has big visions for what could become of NYC's transit system (h/t Gothamist). In his most recent iteration of the Future NYC Subway map, he "sought to plan out a system expansion which would be as cost effective as possible by addressing current service bottlenecks, train car issues, current ridership and population growth." This includes: a PATH train to Staten Island: a K line to connect the Brighton Beach Line (B/Q) to the Crosstown (G) at Bedford-Nostrand Avenues; a 10th Avenue L train extension; a majorly enhanced Second Avenue subway; and a Bushwick-Queens line.
The details on all these ideas
The Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Would Run Entirely Through Flood Zones

Map of streetcar route via NYC mayor’s office (L); Map of flood-prone areas via FloodHelpNY (R); combined image via Streetsblog

February 18, 2016

The Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Would Run Entirely Through Flood Zones

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Leading up to Mayor de Blasio's press conference on Tuesday about his proposed Brooklyn-Queens streetcar plan, the internet has been abuzz with criticism and concerns, including whether or not it will accept MetroCard transfers, how it won't really connect to existing subway lines, funding matters, and the issue that the system may favor "tourists and yuppies." But Streetsblog makes another very interesting point–the fact that the proposed route will run almost entirely through city- and FEMA-designated high-risk flood zones, which "raises questions about how the streetcar infrastructure and vehicles would be protected from storm surges, as well as the general wisdom of siting a project that’s supposed to spur development in a flood-prone area."
What does the Mayor have to say about this?
This Map Explains the Historic Tile Color System Used in NYC Subway Stations

Map by vanshnookenraggen.com via Reddit.

February 17, 2016

This Map Explains the Historic Tile Color System Used in NYC Subway Stations

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We know the crowds that pack into our city’s subway cars each day are more than colorful enough, but the system also has a super-geeky color-coded navigation system that exists even outside of the main map’s primary colored lines. The city-owned Independent Subway was opened between 1932 and 1940. Up until 1967, it was the last of three former competing subway systems, and contributed six major lines to what is now the unified New York Subway: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, Q (partial). Squire J. Vickers, the system’s architect, designed a special color coding system for each station. Color coded stations were then grouped between express stations to make riders aware of the zone they were passing through. At each express station, the color of the tiles would change. Some station tile color patterns have been altered with subsequent renovations. The system map is based on the original color coding sheet from 1930. After WWII, almost all new subway stations featured their own unique architectural designs and colors
Find out what color your stop is
Waterfront Neighborhoods Fear Proposed BQX Streetcar Would Favor ‘Tourists and Yuppies’
February 16, 2016

Waterfront Neighborhoods Fear Proposed BQX Streetcar Would Favor ‘Tourists and Yuppies’

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Recent news has focused on plans announced by Mayor De Blasio for a streetcar line, dubbed the Brooklyn Queens Connector (BQX), to connect “underserved, but booming” areas of the boroughs. The city’s plan would run for 16 miles along the East River, from Astoria to Sunset Park, at a projected cost of $2.5 billion, serving bustling commercial hubs like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City, as well as providing access for about 45,000 public housing residents. With concerns from local businesses and residents growing, the Times looks to the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, an already-existing streetcar line in New Jersey that travels from Bayonne through Jersey City and Hoboken to Weehawken. It's been moving passengers for over a decade and today serves 46,800 passengers on a typical weekday. By most accounts it's been a success, helping employees get to work (with a skyline view, no less) and encouraging development in areas along the waterfront that had suffered from blight and neglect. Two rivers over, it's the areas through which the proposed "BQX" would travel that are the subject of some concern.
Find out more
Student Project Gets Subway Riders to Scratch and Sniff
February 9, 2016

Student Project Gets Subway Riders to Scratch and Sniff

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"If You Smell Something, Smell Something Else." Those words introduce a handful of signs that have been popping up at a few subway stations around the city, including Canal Street, Herald Square and Union Square. And most people, quite frankly, would rather do just that, if they had a choice...and now they do. School of Visual Arts graphic design student Angela Kim was acutely aware of this fact, and she decided to add a few more to the collection.
What's that smell?
Mapping 22 Million Citi Bike Rides Across NYC
February 9, 2016

Mapping 22 Million Citi Bike Rides Across NYC

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Software Engineer Todd W. Schneider is a super data geek in his spare time, analyzing New York City’s publicly available stats on topics like the transportation system. Recently, he took a closer look at the Citi Bike system (h/t Untapped), which clocked over 10 million rides in 2015–22.2 million rides from July 2013 through November 2015–making it one of the world's largest bike share systems. Schneider's findings spotlight general trends in Citi Bike usage and give us the big picture, via charts, maps and some fascinating animation, on the migrations and tendencies of our busy population of blue and white bikes.
See where all those bikes are going
Does the City’s Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Plan Actually Make Sense?
February 5, 2016

Does the City’s Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Plan Actually Make Sense?

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Like most grand, government-backed plans, yesterday's announcement by Mayor de Blasio that he'd be supporting a proposed Brooklyn-Queens streetcar was met with flashy renderings and promises of how underserved areas and populations would finally get the access they deserve, as would booming commercial hubs like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Sunset Park. But Streetsblog dug a little deeper and came up with several reasons why the $2.5 billion project doesn't quite add up.
Find out why
De Blasio to Announce $2.5B Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Line
February 4, 2016

De Blasio to Announce $2.5B Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Line

By
Earlier in the month, 6sqft shared news of a detailed proposal from non-profit advocacy group Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector that called for a Brooklyn-Queens streetcar line to connect "underserved, but booming" areas of the boroughs. The city must've been listening, because Mayor de Blasio is expected to announce today in his State of the City speech that he'll be backing such a proposal. Like the original scheme, the city's plan will run 16 miles along the East River, from Astoria to Sunset Park, but at a projected cost of $2.5 billion, it will be significantly more expensive than the previous estimate of $1.7 billion, but significantly less than a new underground subway. Not only would the streetcars serve bustling commercial hubs like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City, but they'd provide access for about 45,000 public-housing residents.
More details
Why Is There a Sixth-and-a-Half Avenue in Midtown?
February 1, 2016

Why Is There a Sixth-and-a-Half Avenue in Midtown?

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If you've never heard of it, that may be because this quarter-mile, pedestrian-only street is nearly hidden among the office towers of Midtown. Sixth-and-a-Half Avenue was the first fractional street in the city’s grid system, created in 2012 by the Department of Transportation to encourage people to use the public plazas and covered areas that form a path between 51st Street to 57th Street.
So where is it?
Interactive Graph Compares L Train Commute Times and Rents With Other NYC Neighborhoods
January 29, 2016

Interactive Graph Compares L Train Commute Times and Rents With Other NYC Neighborhoods

By
We're hearing lots of anguish and anxiety over the possibility of an L subway shutdown for repairs for as long as a year or more, and we've taken a look at some possible solutions. Now, we've asked the real estate data geeks at NeighborhoodX to go a little deeper beneath the grumbling to find out just how much convenience can be had along that thin grey line, and how it stacks up against other neighborhoods in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. So which other neighborhoods offer commute times similar to the L train stops—and—just as important when choosing a neighborhood–how do their rents compare? And if you're living along the L, in light of the shutdown, what neighborhood alternatives do you have in the city that provide a similar commute?
Find out here
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