tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post3402494834354295563..comments2024-03-18T23:52:31.939-04:00Comments on The Invisible Visible Man: Thick bridge cables, police placard abuse - and why you'll get nowhere without corrupting powerInvisible Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15942359504874275065noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-18321286583645365572016-05-20T10:26:46.708-04:002016-05-20T10:26:46.708-04:00Kevin,
It's quite true that Moses's tacti...Kevin,<br /><br />It's quite true that Moses's tactics disproportionately affected the poor, blacks and Latinos. It's also worth pointing out that a lot of people didn't get new housing. Many of them were forced into overcrowded conditions near where their houses had been. And, of course, Jane Jacobs chronicled how the new public housing, lacking shops and other amenities, didn't really work for the residents even when it was built.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />Invisible.Invisible Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15942359504874275065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-89939350862413407422016-02-23T21:37:18.337-05:002016-02-23T21:37:18.337-05:00Yes, Robert Moses "wrecked many neighbourhood...Yes, Robert Moses "wrecked many neighbourhoods." And I would add the words "poor" and "black" to that sentence.<br /><br />Mr. Moses's reply to the accusations against him is quite telling. He largely did not deny them, but relied upon an "end justifies the means" argument.<br /><br />For example, a quote from page 4 at:<br /><br />http://www.bridgeandtunnelclub.com/detritus/moses/response.htm<br /><br />"Ninety eight percent of the ghetto folks we moved were given immeasurably better living places at unprecedented cost."<br /><br />Gee, I wonder why those "ghetto folks" were not grateful that their homes and neighbourhoods were being destroyed?<br />Kevin Lovehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13186428862833389619noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-36339498641503940782016-02-16T08:34:00.861-05:002016-02-16T08:34:00.861-05:00Steve,
Thanks for the comment.
Someone told me v...Steve,<br /><br />Thanks for the comment.<br /><br />Someone told me via Twitter that the bike lane isn't continually blocked at present. But I agree the whole business is a pretty clear slap in the face for the city's efforts to improve cycling facilities. For a Department of Transportation that actually had a sense of purpose and self-confidence, it would be a declaration of inter-departmental war. The current DoT seems to have meekly accepted it.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />Invisible.Invisible Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15942359504874275065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-70683751715940052882016-02-16T07:18:06.975-05:002016-02-16T07:18:06.975-05:00I was in Herald Square about a week ago with my ch...I was in Herald Square about a week ago with my children. The police blocking the bike lane there were unloading their assault rifles (I like to pretend they were Kalashnikovs) and standing there brandishing them against unseen threats. I felt they served as a potent symbol that the old guard motorized regime is digging in its heels.Steve O.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13905833445106549609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-39345216525264839792016-02-15T12:25:02.449-05:002016-02-15T12:25:02.449-05:00Anonymous,
Thanks for the comment.
I've said...Anonymous,<br /><br />Thanks for the comment.<br /><br />I've said in the past that the much-trumpeted achievements of the Janette Sadik-Khan era were often individual, isolated projects and fell short of providing a proper network for cycling. There are also some severe design shortcomings, including the dreadful "mixing zones" on the 1st and 2nd avenue bike lanes. Also, I was in New York for only the last 18 months or so of her time at the Department of Transportation, so I'm perhaps less well-placed to judge than others.<br /><br />Nevertheless, the history of NYC suggests a person needs something of a PT Barnum flare for publicity to get things done. It's also telling that the projects for which advocates had argued for years were done in Sadik-Khan's time as commissioner, rather than that or her predecessor or successor. And it's hardly surprising she was unable to make the same impression on the city as Robert Moses. She had six years in a single job with the city. He had 42 years in an unconstitutional mix of jobs at both city and state level that allowed him to subvert nearly every important power structure.<br /><br />I'd be fascinated to know what others think on this matter.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />Invisible.Invisible Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15942359504874275065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-87006725679206345082016-02-15T08:57:35.022-05:002016-02-15T08:57:35.022-05:00Bike infrastructure always seems to fade, while th...Bike infrastructure always seems to fade, while the vehicular ways get enhanced, extended, widened, and upgraded. The type that fades the fastest is paint-based. It may be that paint-based bicycle infrastructure is often the result of the efforts of one or two focused advocates, and begins to fade as soon as the move on in their careers. Certainly, the history of paint-based bicycle facilities where I live has been, over the years, one punctuated by periods of growth followed by periods of decline, neglect, and fading away.John Romeo Alphahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01289456379789026152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002171964909690430.post-67082083160027356272016-02-14T23:22:12.320-05:002016-02-14T23:22:12.320-05:00People give way too much credit to Janette Sadik-K...People give way too much credit to Janette Sadik-Khan. Virtually all of what she got done was built on 35 years of grassroots advocacy, fights that, in fact, lasted much longer than what just took place on Amsterdam Avenue. And, as you note in your own post, many of Sadik-Khan's most coveted accomplishments were not lasting and they are now being wiped out, quite rapidly, in fact. Sadik-Khan is a master marketer (and self-promoter), not a city builder. Most Sadik-Khan-era bike lanes qualify as design and marketing for urban biking, not as infrastructure for urban biking. She's a lot more P.T. Barnum than Robert Moses. The hard projects like Prospect Park West were won by local activists and advocates in spite of Sadik-Khan's tendency toward clumsy and clueless politics that alienated allies and strengthened enemies. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com