A “slip” of Bedford Avenue in Greenpoint has been transformed into a temporarily-permanent pedestrian plaza during the six-week shutdown of the G train.
The northernmost part of Bedford Avenue, which cuts diagonally between Nassau and Manhattan avenues, closed to vehicle traffic on June 28 and will stay that way until Aug. 12. For those six weeks, the roadway — known locally as the Bedford Slip — will act instead as a pedestrian plaza, with planters, tables and chairs and programming.
The city’s Department of Transportation opted to close the roadway during the shutdown to ease bus traffic on Manhattan Avenue, especially for the shuttle bus that’s temporarily replacing the G train.
But some locals hope the pedestrian plaza will remain for much longer than six weeks.
The Bedford Slip sits just north of McCarren Park, at the convergence of Nassau Avenue, Bedford Avenue, and Lorimer Street, and is one of the busiest pedestrian intersections in the nabe.
It’s also historically been fairly dangerous. In 2018, DOT overhauled the intersection with new pedestrian safety improvements after eleven people were injured there between 2012 and 2016. Even after those improvements, six crashes resulting in eight injuries were reported at the intersection between 2019 and 2024, per NYC Crashmapper — including a 2020 crash that left a pedestrian severely injured.
Activists say a permanent pedestrian plaza on Bedford Avenue between Nassau and Manhattan would make locals safer and bring some vibrancy to the neighborhood where now there are only cars.
“The look and feel of the space has increased the quality of life,” said Katie Denny Horowitz, executive director of the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance.
Before, illegal vendors often set up shop on the “bulb out” section of the street, which was irritating local business owners and making an already-dicey situation worse for drivers and pedestrians.
When they got word that DOT was ready to move forward with a six-week pedestrian plaza, NBK Parks, which sponsors the open street, jumped into action to procure planters and tables and chairs.
“It really has opened up the space so you can see, at this point, instead of a backup of cars and confusion and congestion of people, what you’re seeing is a lot of plant life and people enjoying the space,” Horowitz said.
Over the years, reception to the idea of a permanent plaza has been mixed. Some businesses on Bedford Avenue have hung signs opposing the plan in their windows, citing concerns about congestion, parking, and the impact on their livelihoods. An online petition against the Bedford Slip has garnered nearly 500 signatures.
At the same time, more than 2,500 people have signed a petition in support of making the plaza permanent, and nearly 500 of those signatures came after the June 28 implementation of the Slip.
Benji Lampel, a volunteer who has been advocating for the slip since 2021, said reception seems “really positive.”
“I think change is a really scary thing, it is a very reasonable thing to not know how your business will be affected by a major change like this,” he said. “Now that the businesses are seeing that it’s not a catastrophe … it has made things a lot calmer and cleaner and more welcoming, I think it’s created some positive sentiment there.”
NBK Parks and other local groups have hosted block parties, movie nights, back-to-school festivals, and other events on the Slip over the years.
DOT’s decision to close the Slip for six weeks came suddenly, just days before the closure, so the groups haven’t had much time to plan activities, Lampel said, but hope to host some discussions, clothing swaps, book giveaways, and other events before Aug. 12.
After Aug. 12, Lampel said he would like to see the DOT opt to transition the Slip into a permanent plaza.
“The community is showing up, and they’re saying unequivocally ‘We want it to stay a pedestrian plaza,’” he said. “I think, with the support of this community and with our elected officials, we can convince DOT to let it stay.”
DOT representative Vincent Barone said closing the slip during the G train closure would help buses move through the area more quickly and would “not only speed up riders’ commutes, but also enhance safety and create new public space for all to enjoy,” but did not comment on the possibility of the Slip being made permanent.
Horowitz said NBK Parks would be able to add some more permanent features to the Slip if it were made permanent, rather than setting up and putting away chairs and tables every night. The organization would continue to maintain and support the plaza, which she said would be a “nice complement” to other plazas and open spaces in the nabe.
Open Streets and pedestrian plazas not only open up space for pedestrians to walk and recreate, she said, but provide respite for birds and insects — like bees — making long journeys between city parks.
“It’s just been a very busy and often contentious space with a history of traffic violence,” Horowitz said of the Bedford Slip. “So, the ability to rethink how it’s used and be able to extend its use in a more thoughtful way, I think, is beneficial to the neighborhood. Not everyone’s going to agree on how to use it, but I think this moment of really thinking about all the users and how it could increase the quality of life for the neighborhood at large is a good opportunity.”
Correction 7/19/24: This story previously mistakenly referred to Benji Lampel as Benji Lampert. We regret the error.
