Car-Free Streets

The first season of Summers Streets comes to a close with tomorrow's third installment. Unlike last week, the sunshine is not in doubt. And whether the set-up separates bikes and peds or lets everyone mingle together, at least one other thing is for sure: This is your last chance to walk and bike car-free in the middle of Manhattan until 2009.

Given the heretofore undiscovered perspectives it affords, Summer Streets presents its share of photo opportunities. Making the most of them, the Department of Transportation is holding a contest for amateur shutterbugs to show off their best shots. From the Summer Streets Photo Competition press release:

This weekend, on the second Saturday of Summer Streets, the first thing my wife Jennifer and I noticed as we ascended the ramp from 42nd Street to Park Avenue was the quiet. I mentioned to Jennifer that I had come across a blog comment likening the scene to the New York portrayed in the post-apocalyptic Will Smith movie "I Am Legend," minus the super-human zombies. Plot holes notwithstanding, that didn't do it justice. The absence of engine noise and incessant honking didn't seem eerie, or even surreal. Just blissful.

Car-free workouts on Cleveland Place will be back tomorrow, but what about the open-toed pumps?

Already a prolific contributor to the Streetsblog Flickr pool, BicyclesOnly has recently put together a StreetsWiki guide to "Urban Bicycling With Children." The entry kicks off with a look at some of the less obvious benefits to biking with kids:

Welcome to the second installment of our Summer Streets photo tour. This pic comes courtesy of BicyclesOnly, who says Park Avenue South is "one of the more dangerous roadways to bicycle on in Manhattan. Without the cars, it's a playground for these two."

We excerpted this essay from reader Jen Petersen to lead off our first Summer Streets photo gallery yesterday afternoon. Her full account follows.