November 18, 2005

Gridlock alert today kicks off NYC holiday season

Today is the first holiday gridlock alert of the holiday season, causing the city to restore express routes through Manhattan, step up enforcement of traffic laws and urge people to use mass transit.

To deal with extra tourists and holiday shoppers in town, the city is bringing back its THRU Streets program, which marks four pairs of Midtown streets as "express" routes from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, prohibiting turns, except at Park Avenue. The city first used THRU lanes in 2002.

The THRU streets are:
36th and 37th Streets
45th and 46th Streets
49th and 50th Streets
53rd and 54th Streets
60th Street

From Nov. 25, the day after Thanksgiving, through Jan. 1, the NYPD will also designate the center lane on Fifth and Sixth avenues for through-vehicles only, preventing vehicles from changing lanes or making turns.

And to discourage people from driving directly into Midown for Broadway matinees, free subway cards will be given out every every Wednesday from Nov. 23rd through December 25 to to people who park at Shea Stadium and use mass transit to get to Manhattan. The program is made possible by the International Gemological Institute, which donated more than 1,000 Metro Cards good for one round-trip.

Remaining gridlock alert days for 2005:
Wednesday November 23rd
Wednesday November 30th
Friday December 9th
Thursday December 15th
Friday December 16th
Wednesday December 21st
Thursday December 22nd
Friday December 23rd

For more details, see the city's Department of Transportation web page.

November 18, 2005 07:22 AM in Transportology

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