Skip to content

Thursday’s Headlines: Keep on Rocking in the (Car) Free World Edition

Tonight's going to be a great night as "War on Cars" co-host Sarah Goodyear's band plays on the Lower East Side. And last night was fun, too, as street safety advocates partied in Soho. Click the headline above for all the day's news and party photos.
Thursday’s Headlines: Keep on Rocking in the (Car) Free World Edition

Old guys like our editor still like to get out and rock — so tonight, he and other members of the anti-car/pro-guitar crowd will head to Arlene’s Grocery on the Lower East Side to hear “War on Cars” co-host Sarah Goodyear’s band, Suffragette Kitty. The fun starts at 8. Details here. (Bonus points: The Allen Street bike lane can get you to the club from the north or south — keep a sharp eye out for fellow car-battlers Doug Gordon and Aaron Naparstek on a tandem from Brooklyn.)

And now here’s yesterday’s news in easy digest form:

  • The Post reported on the arrest of a cop for beating up a cyclist on Tuesday. Streetsblog’s Julianne Cuba followed and added some nice details.
  • Gothamist took the exact right angle on the city’s non-story of naming the corner of Broadway at 63rd St. “Sesame Street” to honor the long-running kid’s show. No wonder the mayor declined to take questions. This is a hot one!
  • Car carnage claims the life of a city cop on Long Island. (NYDN)
  • Here’s a great hate read about Uber from the Times’s tech columnist Farhad Manjoo.
  • The Wall Street Journal took a look at MTA labor costs — as the MTA itself starts probing all the “excessive” overtime approved by managers. (amNY)
  • A judge upheld the city’s minimum wage for Lyft and Uber drivers. (NY Post)
  • People are getting excited about the Wegman’s that will open in the Brooklyn Navy Yard this fall (amNY, Gothamist), but no one has explained to us how the almost-completed Flushing Avenue bike lane — a key east-west route — won’t turn into a disaster from all those SUV drivers stocking up.
  • And, finally, top players in the livable streets community toasted each other on this year’s long-awaited passage of congestion pricing. The Riders Alliance-hosted event drew virtually all of the bold-faced names that played a role in the historic measure, including, but not limited to, “Gridlock” Sam Schwartz, DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg, Riders Alliance Executive Director John Raskin and group spokesman Danny Pearlstein, a quorum from Transportation Alternatives, former Streetsblog Editor Ben Fried, StreetsPac leaders Peter Frishauf and Eric McClureClayton Guse of the Daily Newsuh, and so many others. The place got so thick with activists that people started joking that if a bomb went off on Walker Street, there wouldn’t be anyone from the livable streets community to actually implement the policy. Our editor snapped the party pics like he was Patrick McMullen or something, so enjoy the happy festivities below:
StreetsPac leaders Peter Frishauf (left) and Eric McClure
StreetsPac leaders Peter Frishauf (left) and Eric McClure played an outsized role in the passage of congestion pricing.
State Senator Andrew Gounardes
State Senator Andrew Gounardes was part of an insurgent wave that flipped the upper chamber.
The legendary congestion pricing proponent Sam Schwartz talks to Streetfilms auteur Clarence Eckerson Jr.
The legendary congestion pricing proponent Sam Schwartz talked to Streetfilms auteur Clarence Eckerson Jr.
(from left) Daily News reporter Clayton Guse, TransAlt spokesman Joe Cutrufo and Brooklyn activist David Herman
(from left) Daily News reporter Clayton Guse, TransAlt spokesman Joe Cutrufo and Brooklyn activist David Herman.
Charles Komanoff and Melodie Bryant
Streetsblog writer (and so much more) Charles Komanoff and Melodie Bryant, a member of the Streetsblog Carolers.
Streetsblog's 2018 Activist of the Year Brian Howald (left) and Streetsblog Editor in Chief 2018-??? Gersh Kuntzman
Streetsblog’s Activist of the Year 2018 Brian Howald (left) and Streetsblog Editor in Chief 2018-??? Gersh Kuntzman

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.

More from Streetsblog New York City

Talking Headways Podcast: New Tricks for Old Bureaucracies

September 4, 2026

Cop Left Pedestrian To Die After Hit-and-Run — And Told His Pals To Lie About It: DA

September 3, 2026

Nine People Were Killed By Hit-And-Run Drivers In August

August 31, 2026

This Week: Streetsblog Is In Repose

‘Insulting’! To Avoid Disrupting Car Traffic On The FDR, DOT Forces Parks To Scale Back Greenway Fix

August 29, 2026
See all posts