Friday’s Headlines: Cuomo’s Amazon-Sized Debacle Edition
They say denial is not just a river in Egypt — but if that’s true, the Amazon is not just a river, but a colossal misread of public opinion and a poor salesmanship job by Gov. Cuomo (who denied it and blamed the State Senate) and Mayor de Blasio (who blamed Amazon). We’ll let reporters at the Post, the Daily News, the Times, the Wall Street Journal, Politico, amNY, Gothamist and even Scott Stringer give you the basics, but the best news from a Streetsblog perspective: the end of the deal means no helipad for Jeff Bezos.
Meanwhile, here’s the livable streets news from a slow yesterday:
- Don’t forget the Public Advocate special election on Tuesday, Feb. 26. A lot of people have, though! (Gotham Gazette)
- Fresh off his success getting the Ocean Parkway bike lane rebuilt, Council Member Mark Treyger is pushing a new idea: changing the hue of city streets so they don’t absorb so much heat. (Huffington Post)
- State officials have spoken to Elon Musk’s Boring Company about a tunnel at JFK. (Crain’s Chicago)
- Public Advocate candidate and Council Member Jumaane Williams has come out in favor of a dedicated bus lane on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, which would be the most important improvement in bus service since they invented the wheel. If this is just a ploy to win the Streetsblog reader’s vote, can we get more of them? (NYDN)
- We’ve long advocated for European-style street design, so maybe it’s time for European-styled police sirens. (Gothamist)
- Is bike share helping or hurting transit? The results are mixed, according to a new study. (GovTech)
- Jason Gay shared his Rocky Mountain fat bike experience — and it was positive! (WSJ)
- And, finally, Boston beat New York again (but this time, it’s a good thing). (SmartCitiesDive)