City Council

The City Council on Wednesday approved a bill that could prevent future disasters like last January's Chinatown tragedy, which claimed the lives of preschoolers Hayley Ng and Diego Martinez.

The City Council Transportation Committee will consider a slate of bills Thursday. Several of them should be of particular interest to livable streets advocates. Here's a rundown.

The City Council will hold hearings on new rules for tour bus operators next Monday.

We've got two more citywide elections to review on the eve of tomorrow's primary vote -- the contests for comptroller and public advocate.

Of all the City Council districts in New York, the one crying out the loudest for transportation reform might just be the seat vacated by Eric Gioia -- District 26 in the southwestern corner of Queens.

Outgoing Council Member John Liu has been a fickle legislator when it comes to livable streets. While the transportation committee chair might endorse congestion pricing, he was also a staunch defender of the mythical put-upon working stiff whose very survival depended on free bridge crossings. And we can't forget his fidgeting when it came time to act on the all-important issue of bike access, his skepticism of landmark street reclamations (while scolding DOT on pedestrian safety), or his repeatedly debunked "two sets of books" claim -- if for no other reason than Liu himself has made it a cornerstone of his current campaign for city comptroller.

The most telling answers at Transportation Alternatives' District 33 City Council candidates forum came after an audience member asked point blank for the debaters' stance on congestion pricing. "I can’t support a candidate who’ll support congestion pricing," said the questioner, Dave Reina. "I think it's punitive, and there are more creative solutions out there. Who’ll stand up against it?"

Tonight's candidate forum for the 33rd City Council district, which covers the Brooklyn neighborhoods closest to the East River, bears special significance for livable streets policy. Outgoing rep David Yassky was an early supporter of congestion pricing in the City Council and later carried the banner for the Bicycle Access Bill, which passed earlier this summer. Will the next council member from the 33rd build on that legacy?

When I set out to summarize responses to the Transportation Alternatives Candidate Survey from City Council contenders in Washington Heights and Inwood, I expected it to take some time. It's a crowded field, after all, with challengers looking to knock off incumbent Robert Jackson in District 7 and a full slate of District 10 hopefuls vying to fill the spot vacated by the disgraced Miguel Martinez.