Foot traffic on NYC streets is finally back to pre-COVID rates, says new study
The report shows that visits to office buildings in commercial districts were up 1.3-percent last month compared to July 2019, putting New York City ahead of other major U.S. cities in the race back to normal. And while 'normal' here still means dodging food carts and weaving around tourists, business leaders are celebrating the milestone.
'It feels GLORIOUS! My city is back!' gushed Midtown attorney and lifelong New Yorker Stuart Saft to Gothamist. Saft says the sidewalks around his Seventh Avenue office have gone from ghost town to gridlock since spring, crediting part of the bounce to return-to-office mandates—his own firm now requires employees to be in at least four days a week—plus a tourism surge and new tenants moving into Manhattan's office market.
That tourism boom, however, comes with a few caveats. SoHo's Sloomoo Institute (yes, the slime museum) reports strong weekend numbers but softer weekday footfall, partly due to fewer international visitors. Neighborhood groups, like the SoHo Broadway Initiative, say they're still seeing big gains—up nearly 15-percent from 2023—and that formerly empty storefronts are filling up again, making the area feel safer and livelier.
Midtown's Flatiron NoMad Partnership says it's still 5-percent shy of 2019 foot traffic, but is making up for it with packed events like its inaugural NoMad Jazz Festival, which drew 'record-breaking crowds' to Madison Square Park.
The ripple effects are citywide: Subway ridership is up 7-percent, bus ridership is up 12-percent, and Long Island Rail Road traffic is up 8-percent year-over-year, according to the Partnership for New York City. Retail sales are also expected to top last year's haul by nearly $1 billion.
Still, some worry about how long the good vibes will last. Rising tariffs and uncertainty around federal funding could stall momentum, and leaders caution that NYC will need to stay competitive to keep attracting both tourists and talent.
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Time Out
11 hours ago
- Time Out
Foot traffic on NYC streets is finally back to pre-COVID rates, says new study
Dust off your MetroCard and sharpen those sidewalk elbows. New York City streets are officially back to their pre-pandemic hustle. For the first time since COVID brought the city to a standstill, Manhattan foot traffic has not just matched but edged past 2019 levels, according to new data from analytics firm The report shows that visits to office buildings in commercial districts were up 1.3-percent last month compared to July 2019, putting New York City ahead of other major U.S. cities in the race back to normal. And while 'normal' here still means dodging food carts and weaving around tourists, business leaders are celebrating the milestone. 'It feels GLORIOUS! My city is back!' gushed Midtown attorney and lifelong New Yorker Stuart Saft to Gothamist. Saft says the sidewalks around his Seventh Avenue office have gone from ghost town to gridlock since spring, crediting part of the bounce to return-to-office mandates—his own firm now requires employees to be in at least four days a week—plus a tourism surge and new tenants moving into Manhattan's office market. That tourism boom, however, comes with a few caveats. SoHo's Sloomoo Institute (yes, the slime museum) reports strong weekend numbers but softer weekday footfall, partly due to fewer international visitors. Neighborhood groups, like the SoHo Broadway Initiative, say they're still seeing big gains—up nearly 15-percent from 2023—and that formerly empty storefronts are filling up again, making the area feel safer and livelier. Midtown's Flatiron NoMad Partnership says it's still 5-percent shy of 2019 foot traffic, but is making up for it with packed events like its inaugural NoMad Jazz Festival, which drew 'record-breaking crowds' to Madison Square Park. The ripple effects are citywide: Subway ridership is up 7-percent, bus ridership is up 12-percent, and Long Island Rail Road traffic is up 8-percent year-over-year, according to the Partnership for New York City. Retail sales are also expected to top last year's haul by nearly $1 billion. Still, some worry about how long the good vibes will last. Rising tariffs and uncertainty around federal funding could stall momentum, and leaders caution that NYC will need to stay competitive to keep attracting both tourists and talent.
Edinburgh Reporter
13 hours ago
- Edinburgh Reporter
Edinburgh council may stop broadcasting some meetings online to save money
Edinburgh council may stop broadcasting some meetings online under plans city officers say would save around £6,000 a year. Some committees have been broadcast live since 2012, with recordings published on the council website. And the covid lockdown led to most publicly-open committees being broadcast live. Now, officers are asking councillors to approve the webcasting of three committees to be stopped, in hopes of saving around £6,000 per year. The Planning Local Review Body, the Consultative Committee with Parents and the Pentland Hills Regional Park Joint Committee would cease to be broadcast. This would mark a return to close to pre-Covid arrangements, though broadcasts of the Traffic Regulation Orders Sub-Committee and the Edinburgh City Region Joint Deal committee would continue. And, under proposals by officers, some internal and restricted meetings would stop being recorded with the webcasting system, with recordings instead being made with Teams. The same report also asks councillors to make a decision on whether to start recording private meetings, as well as the private portions of public meetings. Officers have recommended that councillors vote against it, over fears that they would be open to subject access requests and may be asked for in court proceedings. They say that exposure could conflict with the city's 'risk-averse' appetite, and instead want to see more detailed notes of private meetings kept. The request came after councillors raised concerns about the level of detail in minutes produced from private meetings. If recordings of meetings began, most recordings would only be retained until a copy of minutes was agreed. Officers suggest that the recording could be carried out either through the webcasting system – which could incur additional costs – or through Microsoft Teams. They say that using the webcasting system would incur additional costs, and could see uploads of the public portions of meetings significantly delayed. Using Microsoft Teams would produce lower quality recordings, but they say this would not be an issue due to the fact that the recordings would not be intended for publication. By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
Wales Online
19 hours ago
- Wales Online
Cardiff releases A level results 2025 grades as pupils beat the Wales average
Cardiff releases A level results 2025 grades as pupils beat the Wales average Teenagers from the capital are off to top universities across the UK Llanishen High friends Gabriel Dias and Maksim Hudzishevsky pick up their A level results (Image: WalesOnline) Cardiff schools have beaten the national average for A levels but the city's results are slightly down on last year. Wales's largest local education authority said its performance "stands out" with outcomes exceeding Wales as a whole. WJEC results for the city show 36.3% achieved A* to A grades compared to 29.5% across Wales. The overall A pass rate was 98.6% of entries achieving A* to E grades, while 82.8% secured A* to C, against 77.2% nationally. Across Wales results for the top A* grade at A level was up this year. A level results for Cardiff are higher than those in 2019 pre-pandemic but very slightly down on 2024, the first year exams moved back to pre-Covid arrangements without extra support for candidates and schools. Read the biggest stories in Wales first by signing up to our daily newsletter here Paluck Bhandari, 18, from Fitzalan High, is off to Oxford University to study law (Image: John Myers) Sarah Parry, headteacher at Cardiff's Llanishen High, said she was thrilled for her pupils collecting their results today. She said: 'We are very proud of the achievements at every level. Success doesn't look the same for everyone and we are so proud of the wide range of achievements today. Article continues below 'We celebrate our students for their results but more importantly for the effort and resilience they show before then. Their results are very well-deserved.' Among her student successes were Maksim Hudzishevskyy, 18, who achieved an A* in geography, an A in business and a B in economics. Maksim got into his first choice university and will head to Cardiff University to study accounting and finance in September. Fellow Llanishen High student Gabriel Dias, 18, was awarded three Bs and is off to Liverpool John Moores to study biomedical science. 'I'm very happy with the results and to be going to Liverpool, I'm planning to go out tonight with everyone to celebrate,' Gabriel said. Marcus Cossar, 18, got an A* in maths and three As in physics, computer science and economics. Marcus is going to his first choice university, Bath, to study economics in September. Owen Holconbe with an A and three Bs is heading to ACM in London to study drumming. As students picked up their results across Wales exam bosses explained how they arrive at grades and grade boundaries for A level results. Across the city at Fitzalan High, Paluck Bhandari, 18, has got into Oxford University to study law after getting two A*s and a B in her A levels. She studied maths, sociology and English and is "thrilled" to be heading to one of the world's top universities. 'I want to say thank you to all my teachers that I've had since year seven and to my parents, it was really stressful process but I'm so glad to be going into university that will give me the tools to make change in the world,' Paluck said. Kate Mingo, 18, also from Fitzalan High, achieved four A*s in maths, economics , pyschology and sociology. She is going into the university of Leeds to study economics. 'Fitzalan is very supportive and I couldn't ask for any better students, really amazing staff," Kate said, "I'm very relieved and very happy I don't have to relive a levels. I'm excited but also nervous to move to Leeds." Milly Pugh, 18 another student from Fitzalan, is jetting off to university in the USA. Milly got A*, A and C for psychology, sociology and chemistry A levels and will study sociology at Connecticut College. 'I'm a little nervous to fly out but I'm very excited to meet everyone and get to know America," said Milly. She said she was inspired to cross the Atlantic after hearing about a former Fitzalan student who studied in the USA. Article continues below Cllr Sarah Merry, Cardiff's deputy leader and cabinet member for education, said: 'Congratulations to all students receiving their results today. Your dedication and hard work is commendable. "It's encouraging to see Cardiff's continued academic progress, with results surpassing the Welsh average once again."
