DOT Unveils Sidewalk Compass Markings

If you’re a directionally-challenged pedestrian, as I am, and often have to rely on sun and skyline to tell you which way is up, this one’s for you.

compass.jpgFrom the DOT:

Tuesday, October 16, 2007, 12:30 pm at 150 East 42nd:  

New York City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, Grand Central Partnership (GCP) President/CEO Fred Cerullo and MTA CEO Lee Sander will unveil new directional compass decals on sidewalks at subway exits in Midtown Manhattan. The compasses will display the name of the street the decal is on, and what street lies one block in each direction, helping pedestrians and exiting subway passengers quickly orient themselves.

It’s unclear if the decals will be exclusive to Midtown, though that’s the way it looks at this point. Here’s hoping they’ll eventually be installed elsewhere. In the meantime, chalk this up as another hit for the "new DOT."

  • Clarence Eckerson

    Our DOT is so cool! (OK, never thought I would say that.) Even though I am very good with directions sometimes it’d be nice to have this when coming out of a subway…

  • pedant

    Will “north” on these decals point uptown or to magnetic north? They differ by about 29 degrees.

  • mg

    SWEET. Though most subway exits will tell you which corner you’re exiting on (this concept took at least 2 days to explain to one of my friends.)

  • rfr

    Grid north vs. magnetic north vs. true north. And for good measure, what about adding an indicator pointing towards Mecca? I’ve seen many Muslim street vendors taking time out for midday prayers, but have noticed a lack of consensus on which way to face.

  • Ray

    My first thought was, this is a GREAT idea! And i still think it’s a pretty good idea, but I can’t help but see this as one more reason for tourists to stop in the middle of the sidewalk and obstruct traffic.

  • v

    thank goodness. some other cities have these, and they are *awesome*

  • Clarence Eckerson

    Ray. Maybe, but it will also get rid of the most frequent question tourists ask NYers, “Which way is 5th Avenue, that way or that way?”

    So it will save us all time in the long run, though I always love to answer the queries from cute seniors from out of town.

  • Sadik-Khan for emperor! This is fantastic. I’ve seen suggestions for exactly this for years, but never thought I’d see the day…

  • fdr

    Before you anoint Sadik-Khan as emperor, take note that this was an idea submitted by a private citizen that Weinshall endorsed. DOT has been working on this for over a year.

  • Brian

    This makes me want to cry.

    Directional clues was what the WTC used to provide for anyone in Midtown.

    People became lost coming out of a subway on 9/12/01.

  • Emperor

    Before the annointing ceremony, consider this was also an idea publicly floated when 14th street was reconstructed back in the early 1990’s.

    You annointers are really getting ahead of yourself.

  • the mag declination for this area this year is around 14 degrees,(13.9). nothing that will make a difference navigating the city.
    the compass are a great idea , i have always wondered why there was nothing to indicate your direction when leaving a subway station. great that the DOT is implementing this.

    i also use hopstop street viewes i have time so i know which way to go when exiting a subway station.

  • SPer

    I have wanted these for years! In spite of those signs inside the subways, every now and then I have that experience of getting above ground, heading confidently off in the direction I need to go, only to realize a block or so on that I’m going the wrong way. Then comes the most peculiar sensation of proprioceptive disorientation, where I correct course for still, for several seconds, don’t *feel* that I’m going the right way, and somewhat effortfully revolve the world (and the location of the Hudson or the East River) into it’s correct position.

  • Steven

    Chicago has had these for some time on the Red Line downtown.

  • Scott

    Midtown is easy to navigate… if you can see two streets, you can orient yourself.

    Downtown is the hard one.

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

The wider pedestrian zone is separated from the bike lane by planters, and the bike lane is separated from motor vehicle traffic by inexpensive bollards and low-profile barriers. Photo: NYCFreeParking/Twitter

This Block Now Has a Protected Bike Lane *and* a Wider Sidewalk

By David Meyer |
Midtown Manhattan avenues have a problem: The sidewalks aren't wide enough for all the people walking on them. People have to walk in the roadbed to get where they're going. On avenues with protected bike lanes, this means people on foot spill over into bikeways, rendering them all but impassable for cyclists. Now there's a single Midtown block with a protected bike lane that also has a wider sidewalk.

The New York of 2016 Needs the Wide, Generous Sidewalks of 1906

By Ben Fried |
The Times ran a feature on the pedestrian crush in New York City today, and as good as the photos are, they don’t do the situation justice. To get a sense of just how inadequate the sidewalks are in Midtown, you need to go there — or failing that, watch this Streetfilm from 2009 with narration by Streetsblog publisher Mark […]

The 96th Street Sidewalk Nibblers

By Aaron Naparstek |
Enjoy the new Clarence Eckerson film, "The Sidewalk Nibblers." "Erosion of cities by automobiles entails so familiar a series of events that they hardly need describing. The erosion proceeds as a kind of nibbling."  –Jane Jacobs The New York City Department of Transportation and MTA recently announced plans for a big, new subway station with elevators in […]