Dates: Thurs., June 15–Wed, June 21
ALTERNATE SIDE PARKING RULES IN EFFECT ALL WEEK
Happy Father’s Day! Sunday is dad’s day, and though traffic will be lighter than on Mother’s Day one month ago, Lower Manhattan should still expect some slowdowns at the Holland Tunnel.
It’s Pride season again, and New York City will celebrate with festivals and rallies throughout the coming week.
Friday kicks off with NYC Pride: The Rally, bringing thousands to Foley Square, between Worth, Centre, and Lafayette streets, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Expect rush hour slowdowns on these streets and Broadway to also impact traffic to/from the Brooklyn Bridge.
On Wednesday at 6:30 p.m., the very first Village Voice Pride Awards will honor LGBTQ+ heroes. Alan Cumming will host this event at Capitale, on Bowery at Grand Street.
Stay tuned for details on the main event, the Pride Parade, on Sunday June 25th and follow me on Twitter @GridlockSam for up-to-date info.
Two festivals on Sunday, within blocks of one another, will make driving on uptown streets slow going:
The P.A.L. Festival will close University Place between 14th and 23rd streets from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, causing jams along 14th Street, University Place, and Fourth Avenue.
Also Saturday, just down the street, the McBurney YMCA Sixth Avenue Festival will close Sixth Avenue between 14th and 23rd streets from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., causing uptown traffic to shift to Eighth Avenue.
From the mailbag:
Dear Transit Sam,
I thought dark, tinted automobile windows were illegal in New York, am I wrong? As summer approaches, I seem to be seeing more and more on the streets. I realize the police are very busy, but why don’t they ticket these cars?
Sincerely,
Gail
Dear Gail,
No, you’re right. Dark tinted car windshields and windows are prohibited. And for good reason. Pedestrians and other motorists often make eye-contact with drivers, which lets them know if it’s safe or not to go. Police need to see inside a vehicle in case someone has a weapon or a person is in distress. Dark tinting is defined as windows that allow 30% or less of light to get through. Precincts used to have meters available to the public to determine light transmission. Nowadays you may need to go to a mechanic. In addition, your car may fail its annual inspection if the windows are too dark. Police do often stop cars and ticket them for dark windows. In fact, in lower Manhattan’s First Precinct, a recent study by Transportation Alternatives found more summonses were written for tinted windows than for speeding and failure to yield the right of way, combined.
Transit Sam
