Tuesday’s Headlines: Welcome Back Edition

Close readers may have noticed that Streetsblog was “on hiatus” last week, reportedly for “a week of internal strategy sessions, planning meetings, professional development and personal soul-searching punctuated by the occasional Martini olive.”

And, indeed, we did repair to Streetsblog’s secret lair to discuss a Streetsblog reboot that is going to change the game of New York City journalism. As our friends at the Department of Transportation often tell us when we ask pesky questions, “We’ll have more to say about that very soon.” (That said, while we were on hiatus, the Times appeared to be stalking us.)

While we were away, our inbox filled with lots of emails about upcoming events, so let’s get you back into the post-Labor Day swing by helping you set your September calendar:

• On Wednesday, head to Roosevelt House at Hunter College to hear Sam Schwartz and Cary Pepper talk about their autonomous car thriller, “Autokill.” Click here to join the waitlist, as it’s sold out.
• Colin Jost and Pete Davidson will finally put their Staten Island Ferry to good use on Sept. 17. (WPIX)
• Also on Sept. 17, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council will show off its new “Crash Data Explorer.” Click here to join the 11:30 a.m. webinar.
• BetaNYC’s annual “City Camp NYC” is on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Hunter College. It’s a rare chance — a “civic sandbox,” if you will — to dig deep into the data that reveal if the city is providing adequate services and safety. Use this link to get $10 off admission (first 20 people only!).
• The annual Bicycle Film Festival starts on Thursday, Sept. 24 and continues through Sept. 27.
• The Transit Museum is hosting a disco night on Saturday, Sept. 26. (Brooklyn Paper, Transit Museum). I will be there with a noisy, wide-lapel shirt.

Now, in other news, here’s the full ICYMI list, with the “Y” actually being “W” for “we”:

• The big story was Hell Gate’s scoop on Monday about the runaway profits Citi Bike started racking up after then-Mayor Eric Adams allowed Lyft to raise prices. The scoop is based on DOT reports that we asked for several weeks ago when Kevin Duggan was writing his story about why the Citi Bike is too damn high. We’ll be following up the Hell Gate piece this week, but the hat-tip goes to Max Rivlin-Nadler, whom we also thank for including many Streetsblog links in his piece.
• So Council Member Tiffany Caban participated in the Times’s ongoing series, “How can they possibly live in New York City on (insert dollar figure here)?” and we learned a few things: she owns a car, parks it on the street, and pays $1,800 a year for insurance — a revelation that, again, calls into question Gov. Hochul’s absurd push earlier this year to lower car insurance costs.
• Meanwhile, Gloria Steinem understood why real New Yorkers don’t have cars. (Bluesky)
• Gothamist, Brooklyn Paper and Streetsblog (despite our hiatus!) covered the latest fatal crash on Third Avenue in Brooklyn with the same Dave-do-something angle.
• We’ll have some coverage later this week about the Department of Transportation’s just-published truck route map, but Staten Island Council Member Frank Morano is already raising interesting questions. (SI Advance)
• Only the New York Times could write about the politics of bike lanes without a single word about their role in making roadways safer.
• Another sign that summer’s over: Starting today, the Sanitation Department is going to start cracking down on buildings that aren’t putting garbage in bins. (Gothamist)
• NY1 offered tears from drivers for a beloved parking lot that they selfishly don’t want to become housing.
• Queens open street legend and Friend of Streetsblog John Surico was named head of the QueensWay park effort. We’ll provide further coverage later this week. (QNS)
• While we were away, the Mamdani administration formally cut the ribbon on the Ashland Place bike lane. This Instagram Reel tells the story, but amNY also covered:

• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took aim at a GOP bill that would undermine New York City’s anti-idling law. (AOC via Twitter)
• What could possibly go wrong with letting taxi drivers fill up loading zones? (The City Reporter)
• Our Chicago colleague John Greenfield let the world know that he’s no fan of U.S. DOT Sec. Sean Duffy. (Chicago Tribune)
• County of No: Long Island towns hate transit-oriented development. (Newsday)
• A former bike messenger stole my idea for politically minded bike tours of the city. (amNY)
• In case you were concerned about global climate change, don’t worry; ABC News reports that it’s all the Earth’s fault (at least that’s how the story reads).
• At last, City Hall is taking steps to get Columbia University to uphold its requirement to keep 116th Street open to the public (NY Times, Politico), and a huge number of pols, including Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Council Member Shaun Abreu and incoming Rep. Darializa Avila Chevalier, will gather at the gates at noon today.
• The Times’s Paul Goldberger also gave a master class in city-building, albeit reflecting on the lessons of post-9/11 planning. The Times also looked at post-Sept. 11 bollards.
• Speaking of Lower Manhattan, here are some gorgeous photos from Keith Meyers that reveal part of what we lost on Sept. 11, 2001. (NY Times)