A far-left, car-hating Brooklyn pol is pushing a bill that would create 1 million square feet of new “pedestrian space” to the Big Apple annually over the next five years.
The legislation, introduced Tuesday by Democratic Councilman Lincoln Restler, fails to estimate how many parking spaces and driving lanes would be lost through the scheme — and city transportation officials couldn’t either.
However, it would require the city Department of Transportation to include Restler’s proposal — which seeks new pedestrian plazas, curb extensions and other car-free space — as the agency’s “benchmark” in its next five-year “Streets Master Plan” due in December.
It would also require the DOT and Mayor Mamdani to “prioritize” new pedestrian space near bus stops and subway stations with the “highest rates of pedestrian traffic” like Manhattan’s Herald Square and Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.
“This would be adding more open streets, adding more public plazas, adding more ‘daylighting’ [banned parking near crosswalks], so that we all have the necessary pedestrian space we need to get around,” Restler told DOT officials March 3 while pitching his plan during a Council transportation committee hearing.
“As a New Yorker, I don’t think there is anything more frustrating than being stuck behind a slow-walking person, and it often happens in these highly congested areas because we just don’t have enough space for all of us to get around,” barked Restler, who reps Williamsburg, Greenpoint and other bike-friendly communities.
The bill is already drawing plenty of heat from critics.
“This is yet another favor for the anti-car lobby that will make life harder for residents of the outer boroughs,” said Councilwoman Joann Ariola (R-Queens).
“Some of my colleagues are under the delusion that the whole city has the public transportation options of Park Slope, and that everyone can ride a bike everywhere in any weather,” added the councilwoman, who represents much of The Rockaways, Howard Beach and other “transit deserts.”
“I wholeheartedly invite them to look beyond their bubbles and come back to reality.”
Sandy Reiburn, a Brooklyn resident and longtime critic of the DOT’s controversial “Open Streets” program, said the legislation would only bring New York City “more gridlock.”
“Streets aren’t decorative space—they’re the arteries of commerce, emergency access, and mobility,” Reiburn said.
“Restler’s plan treats streets like empty real estate, but for seniors, paratransit users and the disabled, a curb isn’t optional — it’s access. Wiping out roadways wipes out the ability to pick people up where they actually need to go.”
The DOT – which oversees 93 public plazas totaling about 2 million square feet — has added nearly 500,000 square feet of pedestrian space annually the past four years.
The agency’s previous five-year plan fell short of meeting targeted goals like building 150 miles of protected bike lanes and 250 miles of protected bus lanes by the end of 2025.
“Walking is the primary way that we all get around as New Yorkers,” said Restler, who notoriously has championed to reduce curbside parking and other policies prioritizing pedestrians, cyclists, and public-transit riders over drivers. “And frankly, the city does far too little to ensure that we have adequate pedestrian space across our communities, especially in the most congested areas.”
DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn, a Mamdani appointee, all but said the agency has no desire put the brakes on it.
“As demand for pedestrian space increases, we are responding by expanding opportunities that prioritize pedestrians at the block, corridor, or district-wide scale,” he said.
“We are also developing some exciting new programs and commitments on this topic that we intend to incorporate into the upcoming new Streets Plan. “We look forward to ongoing conversations with the Council to identify initiatives that meet our shared goal to increase pedestrian space citywide.”
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