NEW YORK—Traffic is adjusting flow and pedestrians are spilling onto the newly-created open spaces along Broadway. Memorial weekend signaled a change to Times Square that may reconfigure the heart of Manhattan forever.
The face of retail has changed for many businesses with the Green Light for Midtown project undertaken by the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT). Experts are saying retail turnover could increase up to 20 percent along the new pedestrian corridors.
“Times Square is the heaviest pedestrian place in America,” said Paul Fetscher, president of Great American Brokerage. More than 350,000 people walk through Times Square each day on overflowing sidewalks, the DOT figures say.
More space for people to slow down, stop, gather, and rest will change shopping patterns. “It should result in more [retail] transactions,” Fetscher said. “People can’t make a purchase when they’re in their vehicle.”
There are 4.5 times as many people as vehicles in the area, and until now, only 11 percent of the space was allocated for pedestrians, the DOT report said. Traffic on Broadway moved on average 4.2 miles per hour and crash statistics were 137 percent higher than at the nearby Avenues. More than 3 acres of open space will be added to the Broadway strip by project completion in August.
“It’s going to be a great urban oasis,” said Fetscher.
