Janette Sadik-Khan

One of the interesting developments to come out of the National Association of City Transportation Officials "Designing Cities" conference (currently in its second day) was the announcement of a wide-ranging new design guide to be released next year. NACTO's "Urban Streets Design Guide" will show how streets of every size can be re-oriented to prioritize transit, safe walking and biking, and public activity.

New York City bicyclists will celebrate bike activism’s past, present and future this evening in a ride from Greenwich Village to Central Park South and back to the Village, culminating in a community forum at Cooper Union. These linked happenings come the day after the New York Times managed to twist its big story on the July 2011-June 2012 spike in NYC traffic fatalities into a jab at DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan’s livable streets makeover.

This morning, elected officials and community leaders unveiled a slate of pedestrian safety improvements to Delancey Street, long ranked as one of the city's most dangerous places to walk.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood joined NYC DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan at the corner of 42nd Street and Second Avenue this morning for the official launch of the city's new LOOK! campaign, aimed at distracted drivers and pedestrians.

Following the launch of the city's first 20 mph zone in the Claremont section of the Bronx last year, NYC DOT has selected 13 more areas to receive the "slow zone" treatment (see the full list), Mayor Michael Bloomberg and DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan announced this afternoon. DOT was inundated with applications for slow zones after the agency announced the program in November, and Sadik-Khan said more neighborhoods would be able to opt in next year.

Mayor Bloomberg and NYC DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan today announced an expansion of the city's Slow Zone program, which lowers speed limits in selected areas from 30 to 20 mph and implements low-cost traffic-calming measures like speed humps.

The Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway started out as a glimmer in the eyes of a few dedicated volunteers 14 years ago. Now it's a comprehensive city plan to build out a ribbon of parkland from Greenpoint to Sunset Park.

America's streets are changing for the better. The signs are everywhere: Whether it's bike sharing in Chattanooga, complete streets in New Orleans or bus rapid transit in Cleveland -- cities across the country are trying new things and making impressive progress in the pursuit of safer streets and sustainable transportation.

Times have changed since Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer hosted a conference on transportation reform in 2006. Five years ago, New York City appeared to be on the verge of shaking off the traffic-first approach to street engineering that had dominated city transportation policy for decades. Whispers were in the air about a push to tame city traffic and fund the transit system by putting a price on congestion-plagued streets. Since then, plenty of innovation has come to NYC streets, while traffic congestion and transit funding remain core challenges.