Summer Streets is back for three Saturdays in August

The fifth annual Summer Streets program kicks off on Saturday, August 4th, the first of three Saturdays to set aside seven miles of Manhattan boulevards for car-free travel. The city Department of Transportation will implement the closures on Saturdays: August 4th, 11th, and 18th, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. During those hours New Yorkers will be free to walk, bike, play, and enjoy car-free streets from the Brooklyn Bridge up to Central Park.

To view an event map and traffic details for Summer Streets, click here.

In Lower Manhattan, the event will close Centre Street to vehicles between the Brooklyn Bridge and Reade Street, and Lafayette Street will be closed north of Reade. The traffic closure continues north to Fourth Avenue, and on Park Avenue up to 72nd Street, where the route terminates in Central Park.

In past years, in lieu of vehicles, those streets welcomed thousands of bicyclists, walkers, runners, and notable sights along the way -- such as the pools transformed from dumpsters during Summer Streets 2010. Five rest areas also will be stationed along the route.

Major cross-town streets will be open to traffic during the event, and most cross-town bus routes will be unaffected. Buses along the route will be re-routed, with signs posted to redirect riders to nearest bus stops. Bike riders, rollerbladers, runners, and others will be directed to and from the car-free route to the Hudson River Greenway and other locations via low-traffic side streets.

Businesses are encouraged to schedule deliveries and pickups on Friday or after 2 p.m. on the three Summer Streets Saturdays. Parking will be restricted along the route beginning at midnight before each event, and access to garages on side streets will be maintained.

The event is modeled on similar events from around the world, including Bogot, Colombia's Ciclovia, Paris's Paris Plage, and New York's own Museum Mile. The city has planned Summer Streets as part block party and part bike tour, and a time for exercise, people watching, and enjoying clean-air summer mornings. It is a part of the mayor's plan for a greener city, encouraging New Yorkers to use more sustainable forms of transportation, and transforming a valuable public space a healthier place for recreation.

For more details about the event and related activities, and to view the route map, visit www.nyc.gov/summerstreets.

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