Janette Sadik Khan
The amount of adjectives used to describe walking in New York City are typically less than positive. The stereotype goes that the people on the streets of new york are any of the following: pushy, in a hurry, rude, loud, obnoxious, discourteous, stubborn, offensive…well, you get the idea here.
But New York City’s transportation commissioner thinks that the “Mean Streets of New York” aren’t all that mean any more. The world is a difference place and in this TED Talk, she talks about how New York has put fourth a lot of initiatives to make streets all over the city more liveable.
From the YouTube description:
“The work of a transport commissioner isn’t just about stop signs and traffic signals,” explains Janette Sadik-Khan, who was appointed to that role in New York City in 2007. In this funny and thought-provoking talk, she details the thinking behind successful initiatives to reshape street life in the 5 boroughs, including the addition of pedestrian zones in Times Square and the arrival of Citi Bikes. Watch for the special cameo at the end of the talk.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LujWrkYsl64[/youtube]