According to the NY Times today, Mayor Bloomberg has announced that the 8-month long experiment of pedestrian plazas in the heart of Times Square, which caused parts of Broadway to be closed to vehicular traffic, will remain open to pedestrians permanently.

Despite traffic flow not being improved, the decision came from the positive feedback from tourists, merchants and workers in the area. From the NY Times, “An extensive survey of local businesses found that more than two-thirds of the area’s retail outfits wanted the project to become permanent. About 75 percent of New Yorkers surveyed by the Times Square Alliance, an area business group, said they were happy with the new plazas and that they had improved the aesthetic experience of Times Square.”

I’m a big fan of the pedestrianization of this space, as seen in previous entries here, here and here and am excited thar New York City has decided to make this committment for the health of the city and its inhabitants. This is a great example for others American cities. If New York City can take a congested area and give it to pedestrians, any city can do it.

images via berk2804

Update: Streetsblog has written on this topic today as well, including some information from today’s press conference. From Streetsblog, “Sadik-Khan, who called the observed improvements ‘an example of the results we want to deliver on the streets of New York citywide,’ said DOT would ‘move immediately to transform the plazas into iconic spaces worthy of their iconic setting.’ The permanent design of the plazas will incorporate new pavements, new seating, and event spaces.”

As far as the debate about the traffic issue as it relates to Times Square, the Time Square Alliance President Tim Tompkins pointed out that “the overwhelming majority of people who come to Times Square are not driving.” For this reason, the Broadway areas that have been closed to vehicular traffic are successful because it caters to this majority, something that other areas of NYC find desireable. According to Mayor Bloomberg, “There are other parts of the city where we are getting lots of calls from merchants who want the same kind of thing.”