It was an experiment, a test to see if New Yorkers really enjoyed an open, pedestrian-only Fifth Avenue,” said Deputy Mayor Meera Joshi at the grand opening. “Fifty year ago, Mayor Lindsay tried this. This year marks the first time the city has tried closing Fifth Avenue ( the Manhattan one, that is) to cars in more than 50 years in the summer of 1970, then-Mayor John Lindsay tried weekend closures on the avenue’s stretch in Midtown to study its impact on “commerce, traffic, air pollution, and citizens’ convenience,” the New York Times reported at the time. Festive decorations line pedestrianized Fifth Avenue. Earlier this year, the city Department of Transportation released a study finding Open Streets dramatically boosted the businesses situated along them compared to those on streets dominated by cars. The program has proved popular and has been significantly expanded across two administrations. Open Streets, where roadways are closed off to vehicular traffic and turned into quasi-plazas, first came into being in the early days of the pandemic, to provide space for fresh air to New Yorkers hunkered at home during lockdown. Officials believe opening up the iconic avenue to pedestrians will bring flocks of visitors eager to spend money at the many businesses along the stretch. Hotel demand is at 95% of pre-pandemic levels, he noted. It comes as visitors flock back to the city after two holiday seasons of dramatically reduced tourism due to COVID-19 Fred Dixon, of the quasi-governmental tourism marketing group NYC & Co, said the city is expecting 6.5 million tourists to visit the city just between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve, bringing the total number of visitors this year to 56.4 million.

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