ALTERNATE SIDE PARKING IS SUSPENDED THURSDAY
A new May Day tradition means reassembling Occupy Wall St. for at least one day and that means travel headaches for Downtowners. O.W.S. will hold protests all day Wednesday. In Lower Manhattan, there will be a rally at the Federal Hall National Memorial on Wall St. at Nassau St. from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and an assembly in Zuccotti Park from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Also, a march will close Broadway between Union Square and Whitehall St. around 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. So, if driving, avoid the Brooklyn Bridge area, including Chambers St. and Park Row. West St. to the Battery Tunnel and vice versa will be the better route.
This Sunday marks Cinco de Mayo, which many New Yorkers will celebrate by participating in the Five Boro Bike Tour. The tour will start bright and early Sunday morning, bringing 20,000 cyclists to the staging area around Battery Park, Rector St., and Park Pl. Street closures will begin at 6 a.m. and continue through the morning. The following streets will be affected: Whitehall St. between South and Water Sts., State St. between Whitehall St. and Battery Pl., Battery Pl. between State and Greenwich Sts., Greenwich St. between Battery Park and Trinity Pl., Trinity Pl. between Greenwich and Cedar Sts., Church St. between Cedar and Walker Sts., White St. between Sixth Ave. and Franklin St., and Sixth Ave. from Franklin St. northward. A barrage of bikes will return on the Staten Island Ferry in the afternoon and disperse at Battery Park.
For more information on the bike tour closures, follow me on Twitter @gridlocksam.
All Manhattan-bound lanes of the Brooklyn Bridge will close 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 12:01 a.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday, 12:01 a.m. to 9 a.m. Sunday, and 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday and Tuesday. This will drive westbound traffic to the Manhattan Bridge and onto Canal St.
The Washington Market School Street Fair will close Duane St. between Church St. and West Broadway 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
An art project will close a curb lane on Forsyth St. between Canal and Division Sts. 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
On West St./Route 9A, one lane will be closed in both directions between West Thames and Vesey Sts. 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
At the Battery Park Underpass, all northbound lanes of the service road between The Battery and Morris St. will be closed 24/7 through May 20.
From the mailbag:
Dear Transit Sam,
What are the rules for car service vehicles parking on a city street overnight? My area used to have plenty of parking until a car service company opened and started to park their cars on the local streets. Overnight my block could be filled with cars only from that car service company. I thought taxis and commercial vehicles have to park in a lot overnight.
Wayne, New York
Dear Wayne,
You are correct that commercial vehicles cannot park on the street overnight. However, car service vehicles are not, as far as NYC parking rules, commercial vehicles. They are “service vehicles,” as are taxis and black cabs, both of which are allowed to park on the street overnight.
Transit Sam
Lower Manhattanites: Got a question about traffic or parking? Email me at transitsam@downtownexpress.com.
