{"items": [{"author": "Julia", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/102487727783123805341", "anchor": "gp-1333374569823", "service": "gp", "text": "From what I've read, part of the reason congestion increases with the new street might be increased development along the street. If that's the case, closing streets might not be helpful, since you still have the development.", "timestamp": 1333374569}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1333375736755", "service": "gp", "text": "@Julia\n If it's development it should take a while. Does that match what we see? We build a street, people are getting where they're going faster, then there's development along it and things slow down?\n
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\nThe claim that it's just as likely to help as hurt comes from a math paper.", "timestamp": 1333375736}, {"author": "David Chudzicki", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/106120852580068301475", "anchor": "gp-1333383303531", "service": "gp", "text": "Removing a street from car traffic also makes that street much more pleasant for non-car uses! :)", "timestamp": 1333383303}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1333383875286", "service": "gp", "text": "@David Chudzicki\n Which means that drivers will look suspiciously at anyone saying things like \"let's close roads to improve traffic flow\" because they'll think the motivation is at least partly \"we like roads without cars\".", "timestamp": 1333383875}, {"author": "David Chudzicki", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/106120852580068301475", "anchor": "gp-1333384707578", "service": "gp", "text": "hmm. unfortunate.", "timestamp": 1333384707}, {"author": "Julia", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/102487727783123805341", "anchor": "gp-1333391448266", "service": "gp", "text": "I think my point was, the fact that adding streets causes congestion doesn't necessarily imply that removing them reduces it. But I certainly agree that we should test it.", "timestamp": 1333391448}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/110347619670230195222", "anchor": "gp-1333411576966", "service": "gp", "text": "Streets are not roads; streets are places of commerce and social activity, while a road is just an artery for vehicles between two separate places. Treating both classes as the same thing is a short path to madness.\n
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\nRant over, I think 42nd Street is something unique, and only of limited applicability in an example. But in the same neighborhood, the pedestrianization of Broadway between 47th and 42nd and again at 35th through 32nd actually sped up traffic through Midtown, both by removing redundant vectors in the graph and by eliminating complex six-point intersections at Times and Herald Squares. But the real gains to be made are going to come from highway removal, not street closure. There are already many examples of successful highway closures (the most famous being on the West Side of Manhattan and the Embarcadero in San Francisco), and campaigns for more all over the country.", "timestamp": 1333411576}, {"author": "BDan", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103775592027106438640", "anchor": "gp-1333421992871", "service": "gp", "text": "To what extent do highway and street closures work by convincing people that they're better off just taking public transit? (Which is a fine way for them to work, of course, I'm just curious.)", "timestamp": 1333421992}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/110347619670230195222", "anchor": "gp-1333422479012", "service": "gp", "text": "@BDan\n: The math behind Braess's Paradox doesn't care if the path vectors represent driving or taking transit; it's all one big transport graph. So there's no one answer, but since this is a conversation about congestion, not mode choice, it's sort of irrelevant. ^_^", "timestamp": 1333422479}, {"author": "Rick", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/330107373715095?comment_id=330678963657936", "anchor": "fb-330678963657936", "service": "fb", "text": "Could someone briefly explain, in an intuitive (not mathematical) way, why removing routes increases efficiency?", "timestamp": "1333445144"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/330107373715095?comment_id=330739626985203", "anchor": "fb-330739626985203", "service": "fb", "text": "There's a pretty good intuitive explanation here in the section labeled \"the situation\": http://measureofdoubt.com/.../how-blocking-roads-can-cut.../", "timestamp": "1333456588"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://plus.google.com/103013777355236494008", "anchor": "gp-1333456763218", "service": "gp", "text": "@BDan\n This effect is separate from switching people to public transit. In fact, it shouldn't be making people switch to public transit, because it's speeding up driving. So it's more likely to make people switch away from transit!", "timestamp": 1333456763}]}