Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Car-Free Streets

A Round and a Roundy: Bill’s Wheel of Excuses

Cartoon: Bill Roundy

Editorial cartoonist Bill Roundy
Editorial cartoonist Bill Roundy
Editorial cartoon of Bill Roundy by editorial cartoonist Bill Roundy.

You didn't need to be a swim instructor to see that Mayor de Blasio was flailing.

First, he said he couldn't create open space for crammed-in residents at the start of the coronavirus because he was already doing enough under Vision Zero. Then he said he could, but it would have to be tiny. Then he said it had to have so many police that there was no way to staff it. Then he said Oakland isn't at all like New York.

In any event, our editorial cartoonist Bill Roundy — who has never been that impressed by the mayor's integrity — found the perfect graphic representation of Hizzoner's changing rationale to explain why Oakland can have 74 miles of open streets for people and New York City can have exactly zero (well, .8 miles, if you count Shore Boulevard in Astoria, which was closed to cars last week because neighbors complained of drag racing).

Bill Roundy is a national treasure. All his Streetsblog cartoons are archived here.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Lander, Labor Activists Slam Cuomo After ‘Goliath’ DoorDash Gives $1M

The donation from the the app company is seen as a way of influencing a possible future mayor to side with the tech giant.

May 14, 2025

NYPD Admits Bike Crackdown Based on ‘Community’ Vibes, Not Data

It turns out, the new strategy arose not from data, but from people complaining about e-bikes at community meetings, the NYPD finally admits.

Pain Points: Victims of Road Violence Make Annual Pilgrimage to Demand Safe Streets

“This epidemic is preventable,” a grieving dad said on his first trip to Albany as part of Families for Safe Streets. “It doesn't have to be this way.”

May 14, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines: Top of the Pops Edition

A new battery-swapping cabinet shows the way forward. Plus other news.

May 14, 2025

Police Chase Linked to Fatal Hit-and-Run in Bronx

Kelvin Mitchell a father of three, was killed by a speeding driver apparently trying to escape police.

May 14, 2025
See all posts