New York’s newest thoroughfare is open for business.
6 1/2 Avenue, a midblock pedestrian path between West 51st and West 57th streets, has been christened with new street signs, bright new crosswalks — and annoying new stop signs.
Now motorists driving between Sixth and Seventh avenues on those streets must stop, whether or not someone is crossing .
The new walkway connects public spaces in a handful of Midtown towers. But there is growing concern about how the stop signs will affect crosstown traffic.
“I don’t even know why they put a stop sign here,” said Tony Garcia, 45, a metal-maintenance foreman who drives a commercial van through Midtown every day. “You’re probably going to see a lot of people blow through it.”
Indeed. A pedestrian witnessed six cars skip the stop sign on West 54th Street in two minutes.
But some local business owners like the plan.
“I see that a lot of people are not afraid to cross the street,” said Kamila Myzel, owner of Myzel’s Chocolate.
“They don’t have to go to the corner.”