Central Park

==== Modifications and closures ====
In Central Park's earliest years, the [[speed limits]] were set at {{Convert|5|mph|km/h|abbr=}} for carriages and {{Convert|6|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} for horses, which were later raised to {{Convert|7|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} and {{Convert|10|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} respectively. [[Commercial vehicle]]s and buses were banned from the park.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=244–246}} Automobiles became more common in Central Park during the 1900s and 1910s, and they often broke the speed limits, resulting in crashes. To increase safety, the gravel roads were paved in 1912, and the carriage speed limit was raised to {{Convert|15|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} two years later. With the proliferation of cars among the middle class in the 1920s, traffic increased on the drives, to as many as eight thousand cars per hour in 1929.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=400–401}} The roads were still dangerous; in the first ten months of 1929, eight people were killed and 249 were injured in 338 separate collisions.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1929/11/27/archives/park-safety-is-aim-of-oneway-rules-no-intention-to-make-express.html |title=Park Safety Is Aim Of One-Way Rules|date=November 27, 1929|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007040026/https://www.nytimes.com/1929/11/27/archives/park-safety-is-aim-of-oneway-rules-no-intention-to-make-express.html|archive-date=October 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In November 1929, the scenic drives were converted from two-way traffic to unidirectional traffic.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1929/11/23/archives/oneway-traffic-ordered-for-central-park-new-zone-created-to-relieve.html |title=One-Way Traffic Ordered for Central Park|date=November 23, 1929|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018}}</ref> Further improvements were made in 1932 when forty-two traffic lights were installed along the scenic drives, and the speed limit was lowered to {{Convert|25|mph|km/h}}. The signals were coordinated so that drivers could go through all of the green lights if they maintained a steady speed of {{Convert|25|mph}}.{{sfn|Rosenzweig|Blackmar|1992|pp=400–401}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1932/04/01/archives/central-park-uses-new-traffic-lights-today-to-curb-speeding-and.html |title=Central Park Uses New Traffic Lights Today To Curb Speeding and Protect Pedestrians|date=March 1, 1932|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018}}</ref> The drives were experimentally closed to automotive traffic on weekends beginning in 1967, for exclusive use by pedestrians and bicyclists.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/04/17/archives/new-car-ban-set-for-central-park-test-will-give-cyclists-sole-use.html |title=New Car Ban Set For Central Park|date=April 17, 1967|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007000756/https://www.nytimes.com/1967/04/17/archives/new-car-ban-set-for-central-park-test-will-give-cyclists-sole-use.html|archive-date=October 7, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In subsequent years, the scenic drives were closed to automotive traffic for most of the day during the summer. By 1979, the drives were only open during rush hours and late evenings during the summer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/08/archives/car-ban-a-spring-ritual-gives-park-roads-to-the-people-central-park.html |title=Car Ban, a Spring Ritual, Gives Park Roads to the People|last=Daniels|first=Lee A|date=May 8, 1979|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235427/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/08/archives/car-ban-a-spring-ritual-gives-park-roads-to-the-people-central-park.html|archive-date=October 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

Legislation was proposed in October 2014 to conduct a study to make the park car-free in summer 2015.<ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018"/> In 2015, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the permanent closure of West and East Drives north of 72nd&nbsp;Street to vehicular traffic as it was proven that closing the roads did not adversely impact traffic.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20150618/upper-west-side/central-park-will-be-permamently-car-free-above-72nd-street-mayor-says|title=Central Park Will Be Permanently Car-Free Above 72nd Street, Mayor Says|last=Frost|first=Emily|date=June 18, 2015|work=[[DNAinfo]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928151120/http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20150618/upper-west-side/central-park-will-be-permamently-car-free-above-72nd-street-mayor-says|archive-date=September 28, 2015|access-date=June 22, 2016}}</ref> After most of the Central Park loop drives were closed to vehicular traffic, the city performed a follow-up study. The city found that West Drive was open for two hours during the morning [[rush hour|rush period]] and was used by an average of 1,050 vehicles a day, while East Drive was open 12&nbsp;hours a day and was used by an average of 3,400 vehicles daily.<ref name="Mays 2018">{{cite news|first=Jeffery C.|last=Mays|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/20/nyregion/central-park-car-ban.html |title=Central Park's Scenic Drives Will Soon Be Car-Free|date=April 20, 2018|work=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180708221307/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/20/nyregion/central-park-car-ban.html|archive-date=July 8, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Subsequently, all cars were banned from East Drive in January 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/1/2/16842086/prospect-park-car-free-2018-photos|title=At last, Prospect Park is permanently car-free|last=Plitt|first=Amy|date=January 2, 2018|publisher=Curbed NY|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235234/https://ny.curbed.com/2018/1/2/16842086/prospect-park-car-free-2018-photos|archive-date=October 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In April 2018, de Blasio announced that the entirety of the three loop drives would be closed permanently to traffic.<ref name="Mays 2018"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-new-york-centralpark/new-york-banning-cars-from-central-park-starting-this-summer-idUSKBN1HR2SJ|title=New York banning cars from Central Park starting this summer|last=Cherelus|first=Gina|date=April 20, 2018|publisher=[[Reuters]] U.S.|access-date=October 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181006235118/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-new-york-centralpark/new-york-banning-cars-from-central-park-starting-this-summer-idUSKBN1HR2SJ|archive-date=October 6, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> The closure was put into effect in June 2018.<ref name="Walker 2018"/><ref name="ABC-Car-free-2018"/>

During the early 21st&nbsp;century, there were numerous collisions in Central Park involving cyclists. The 2014 death of Jill Tarlov, after she was hit by a cyclist on West 63rd&nbsp;Street, called attention to the issue.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Santora|first=Marc|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/23/nyregion/woman-dies-after-being-struck-by-central-park-cyclist.html |title=Woman Hit by a Bicyclist in Central Park Dies|date=September 22, 2014|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 25, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325175431/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/23/nyregion/woman-dies-after-being-struck-by-central-park-cyclist.html|archive-date=March 25, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2011, residents of nearby communities unsuccessfully petitioned the NYPD to increase enforcement of cycling rules within the park.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gothamist.com/news/nypd-rejects-central-park-cycling-crackdown-compromise|title=NYPD Rejects Central Park Cycling Crackdown Compromise|last=Del Signore|first=John|date=March 4, 2011|work=Gothamist|access-date=March 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325175430/https://gothamist.com/news/nypd-rejects-central-park-cycling-crackdown-compromise|archive-date=March 25, 2020}}</ref>