Improvements include additional permanent plazas with nearly 2 acres of pedestrian space, new benches, kiosks, and sidewalks along with a new southbound bike lane.
"All the world knows that New Year's Eve is an incomparable time to be in New York City -- and there will be no more iconic place to ring in 2017 than Times Square," de Blasio said. "With the changes unveiled today, Times Square is now a safer and more welcoming place for the millions of residents, commuters and tourists who visit and pass through it every day."
The city said that the pedestrian flow zones and designated activity areas created this year have proven a success in maintaining safe pedestrian flow at the "Crossroads of the World."
NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg, NYC Department of Design and Construction Commissioner Feniosky Peña-Mora and NYPD Captain Robert O'Hare were joined at a dedication ceremony in Times Square on Wednesday by Times Square Alliance President Tim Tompkins, former DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer.
In 2009, DOT announced that car and truck traffic would be replaced by pedestrian plazas along Broadway between West 42nd and West 47th Streets. The $55 million project began in 2013, managed by the Department of Design and Construction for the Department of Transportation.
There was also extensive below-ground work done, with the area also receiving new sewers and water mains; Con Edison and Verizon also completed about $25 million of underground utility upgrades.
"In the almost eight years since Broadway in Times Square was first closed to vehicular traffic, it has never looked better," Trottenberg said. "These amazing changes, coupled with the sensible policies for pedestrian movement and solicitation that we instated this year, have made a magical public space even more wonderful and inviting."
The project was designed by the architecture and design firm Snøhetta under the DDC's
"The timing is perfect: as Times Square teems with people in anticipation of New Year's Eve, we need every inch of space for pedestrians and performances," said Tompkins. "We are also thrilled to be looking our best as we represent NYC to over a billion people worldwide."
