Polly Trottenberg

Before 2009, Times Square was a hellish place to walk. Pedestrians outnumbered vehicles nine to one but were confined to just 10 percent of the street space. The creation of car-free plazas on Broadway changed the equation, and now those plazas are a permanent fixture of the street.

The two-way protected bike lane on Chrystie Street is one of the most anticipated bike network improvements of the year, creating a much safer connection to and from the Manhattan side of the Manhattan Bridge. Today, DOT officials and State Senator Dan Squadron joined advocated for an inaugural ride on the redesigned street.

Bus ridership in New York City has steadily declined since 2002, and bus riders put up with the slowest average speeds in the nation. But the MTA is in no hurry to fix the problem.

Summer Streets takes a big step forward this weekend with "Shared Streets: Lower Manhattan." From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. tomorrow, DOT will open up a 60-block radius in the Financial District to pedestrians and cyclists, limiting motor vehicle access to residents, deliveries, and emergency vehicles [PDF].

A leader of the Throggs Neck Merchants Association tried to thwart DOT's safety plan for East Tremont Avenue at a town hall in the Bronx last night and was firmly rebuffed by Mayor de Blasio, Council Member Jimmy Vacca, and Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. After the exchange, Raisa Jimenez, whose son Giovianni Nin was killed by a hit-and-run driver on East Tremont earlier this year, made an emotional plea to prevent the further loss of life.

DOT will implement a road diet on the stretch of East Tremont Avenue where a motorist killed cyclist Giovanni Nin in June. Last year DOT had dropped the project in response to a hostile reception from Bronx Community Board 10.

With the Albany session over and legislative leaders failing to advance a bill to add 60 speed cameras in NYC, 2016 is going to be the first full calendar year since 2012 in which the city does not expand its automated speed enforcement program.

The de Blasio administration continues to resist the City Council's efforts to devote more resources to street redesigns that will save lives.