NYC.gov Holiday Traffic Plan Makes Way for NASCAR

10:21 AM EST on November 28, 2007

Gridlock Sam warns of widespread "pedlock and "traffic wrath" today. Not helping matters was this morning's NASCAR Victory Lap around Times Square, conveniently timed to coincide with the morning rush.

Times Square will serve as one big pit stop for NASCAR's annual Victory LapWednesday, starting at 44thSt. between Broadway and Sixth Ave. and proceedingvia the following route: 44th St., Broadway, 42nd St., Madison Ave, 53rd St. andSeventh Ave./Broadway, and ending between 43rd and 42nd Sts. outside the HardRock Cafe. Between 8:30a.m. and 9:30a.m., there will be rolling closures on theabove streets, with 44th St. closed from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m. Traffic will beaffected throughout the day.

Fear not, New York City, 2007 may very well be the last year of NASCAR's annual Midtown celebration of laundry detergent, motor oil and the lunacy of American car culture. Tom Bowles at Sports Illustrated writes:

After 27 years in the Big Apple, strong rumors persist that thisweek-long celebration at the Waldorf will be NASCAR's last; the eventappears ready and raring to shift to the bright lights of Vegas for2008 and beyond.
On paper, it seems a smart move; with a race track already nearby and the shrewd promotion of octogenarian track owner Bruton Smith, the city will doubtless embrace NASCAR with open arms.
"I think we've worn out our welcome in New York," said Smith

Correct.

Photo: Photo Gallery / Flickr

Aaron Naparstek @

AARON NAPARSTEK is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparsteks journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. Naparstek is the author of "Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage" (Villard, 2003), a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the endless motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Prior to launching Streetsblog, Naparstek worked as an interactive media producer, pioneering some of the Web's first music web sites, online communities, live webcasts and social networking services. Naparstek is currently in Cambridge with his wife and two young sons where he is enjoying a Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. He has a master's degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor's degree from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Naparstek is a co-founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and the Grand Army Plaza Coalition. You can find more of his work here: http://www.naparstek.com.

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