City officials are walking away from their controversial plan to turn 34th Street between Herald Square and Fifth Avenue into a pedestrian plaza — citing repeated criticism of a scheme that would have shut down yet another major Midtown intersection.
“There isn’t going to be a plaza . . . The changes we are talking about reflect what we have heard from the community,” Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said yesterday.
Curbside access for deliveries and rapid bus lanes are likely to be part of the plans for the street to be unveiled on March 14, Sadik-Khan added.
“There is still going to be traffic on 34th Street. There are going to be deliveries,” Sadik-Khan said.
The city’s decision to scrap the plaza was welcomed by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer as “a step in the right direction.”
“Clearly, discussions between the various stakeholders are having an impact,” Stringer said.
Residents and small-business owners in the neighborhood were outraged by the proposal, and said yesterday they were glad the city will let traffic keep flowing through the area.
“It was a silly idea to start with. Why would you need to close it down?” said Sarah Mercer, 37. “It’s a busy block. I’m glad they’ve come to their senses.”
They were particularly worried about a dramatic change to the traffic pattern. “You need the traffic flow. If you stop it, it’s like stopping a heartbeat,” said Yvette Mercado, 50. “It would have been a disaster.”
Some City Hall sources doubt the Transportation Department was serious about the plaza idea, which has been discussed for nearly three years. One source noted that the department officials indicated to community groups months ago that it would drop the plaza proposal.
Sadik-Khan declined to be more specific about the city’s plans, which she says are still being finalized.
But she expects the proposal will include Select Bus Service, which requires passengers to pay fares at bus-stop machines before boarding. Officials believe this has been a success on First and Second avenues and on Fordham Road in the Bronx.
Whatever plan the city presents later this month will be subject to further revisions that might result from traffic studies now under way in the neighborhood, Sadik-Khan said. “No design is going to pass unless we have a clear green light on the traffic impacts,” she said. “If it does not, it is not going to pass muster.”
Sadik-Khan also promised to continue seeking community input. “We’ve had 54 meetings with the community — 42 over the last year alone,” she said.
Additional reporting by Lachlan Cartwright