A group of legislators want to put the brakes on a city program that limits deliveries during rush hours.
Council members Mark Gjonaj (D-Bronx), Francisco Moya (D-Queens) and Laurie Cumbo (D-Brooklyn) are introducing a bill Wednesday in response to a pilot program the de Blasio administration rolled out in January to clear vehicles from some of the Big Apple’s busiest commercial corridors between 7 am-10 am and 4 pm-7 pm.
They say the “Clear Curb” program had a terrible side effect: killing local businesses in the affected zones in Midtown, parts of Brooklyn and Queens that can’t get deliveries because drivers are afraid of being ticketed or towed.
“It’s critical that local business owners feel that they have an ally in city government,” said Gjonaj, who chairs the Council’s Committee on Small Business. “I hope that the ‘Protect NYC Jobs & Businesses Act’ will encourage the administration to rethink its ‘City Hall knows best approach’ to the needs of business owners. And they can start by reversing course on the job-killing Clear Curb pilot program that is wreaking havoc on the local economy.”
Under the proposed legislation, the Department of Transportation and other city agencies would have to first notify local Council members, community boards and Business Improvement Districts before making changes to street usage, parking and traffic flow for projects covering at least 500 feet or three consecutive blocks.
DOT claims it did meet with some community stakeholders before kicking off the six-month “Clear Curb” program.
But the Council members and some business leaders say that never happened.
Seth Stein, a spokesman for Mayor de Blasio, said the “we’ll review the bill when it is introduced.”



