Last May, New York City officials closed portions of what is perhaps the most famous street in America, Broadway around Times Square, to traffic to create a pedestrian plaza in the middle of the Great White Way.

New York politicians have been robbing Peter to pay Paul for years. Now Peter is broke, too. The state’s Dedicated Highway & Bridge Trust Fund is intended to pay for long-range transportation projects.

On Nov. 1, 2009, New York became the 18th state to make it illegal to text on a mobile phone or any other electronic device while driving.

While this represents a step in the right direction, the new law is far too weak to be effective.

One year ago, the Bloomberg Administration announced a “test project” that would turn Broadway between 42nd and 47th Streets (Times Square) and from 33rd to 35th Streets (Herald Square) into pedestrian malls, with the goals of improving traffic flow and reducing pollution.