Aug 7, 2008 5:50 pm US/Eastern
'Summer Streets' Celebration Starts Saturday
Reporting
Cindy Hsu
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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In a few days, cars and trucks will be banned from certain streets in Manhattan. It's all for the huge celebration "Summer Streets," and everyone's invited.
CBS/NYC
What's being called a "ribbon of recreation" is about to wind through the streets of Manhattan in less than 48 hours.
It's called "Summer Streets," and everyone's invited.
In a few days, cars and trucks will be banned from certain streets in Manhattan as part a huge celebration.
Automobiles along Park Avenue are about to be cleared out and replaced with bikers, dancers, and lots of kids for the next three Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"Instead of cars and trucks, we're going to have cyclists and pedestrians," DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said. "Instead of honking horns, we're going to hear the sounds of salsa, the sounds of kids' laughter."
Streets will be shut down for nearly seven miles, starting at the Brooklyn Bridge and winding up at Lafayette, 4th Avenue and Park Avenue, up to 72nd Street.
"With 8.2 million people walking around the streets of New York everyday, we think that reclaiming some of those streets for pedestrians is an important way to improve the livability of the city," Sadik-Khan said.
City bike riders seem to love the idea.
"During the summer, the air is so hard to breathe as it is," cyclist Pamela Tagliaferro said. "I think we need a little vacation from the fumes."
Music mogul Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter grew up in Brooklyn's Marcy Projects, and sees "Summer Streets" as an opportunity for kids to experience something positive.
"Hip-hop grew out of block parties, out of party, out of celebration," Carter said. "It turned into this industry that allowed us, afforded us a lot of the opportunities to get out of the neighborhoods that we were in."
However, businesses along the route and drivers are worried about the street closures.
"There will be relatively minimal disruption," Mayor Bloomberg said. "It's a Saturday morning, in August traffic is down anyway."
"We've worked very, very closely with businesses and hotels along the route and have a good plan of action of how they're going to get their deliveries," Sadik-Khan said.
"Summer Streets" is drawn from similar events that have been very successful in cities like Bogota and Paris. It will be the first such event held in the US on such a large scale.
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