Here is a sad photo of the court house on 161st Street in the Bronx. Look at all of those cars parked on the sidewalk!

This image was used to illustrate the report Above the Law: A Study of Government Parking Permit Abuse in New York City (PDF) by Transportation Alternatives in 2006. Happily, the intersection has been renovated recently. It’s now a public plaza. And it’s filled with people, mothers with strollers, teens skateboarding, and people who work in the area getting a little sun. You can’t tell from this photo, but there are lots of places to sit. This area extends the nearby (often overcrowded) park. And it connects it to the court house steps, a favorite neighborhood meeting place, with the rest of the neighborhood. The street is not as wide and the cars go a little slower. It feels safer and looks much more inviting.

Wow! So, much better! However, the area near Yankee Stadium still needs a lot work. This nice public plaza was a great start. So, now we may not have a parking problem in front of the court house anymore, but there are still problems on some of the nearby streets. More on this to come.

(See the man in the red shirt? He is going to risk his life! The sidewalk ends suddenly and you’re dumped in to a painted median strip with nothing more than skimpy metal poles to protect you from the onslaught of cars on both sides!)

This is one of the worst places to cross the street in the Bronx. There is no “yield” sign… just a “merge” sign. To cross one must stand in the street between some metal poles that give you a faint amount of security– then, when you don’t see a lot of cars, DASH for the other side! It’s a good idea to try waving you hands in the air to become more visible. This intersection needs a crosswalk and a “yield” sign. Drivers only yield to other cars, not to people. You could get killed here.

I asked a local cop what one was supposed to do at that intersection and she told me that the cars should yield… but there is not yield sign… so they don’t.

(Drivers just can’t see the people getting ready to cross the street on the left. And even when they do… they never stop.)

Maybe it should even have a light? What do you think?

This intersection needs HELP.