MEASURING THE IMPACT OF SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY INITIATIVES ON SMALL BUSINESSES

The Jerome Gun Hill Business Improvement District (BID) provides a myriad of supplemental support services to merchants in the Norwood section of the Bronx, an area which surrounds Montefiore Medical Center's main campus. In order to support and inform its merchant community as they adapt to a future with fewer cars, the BID enlisted a team to assess how new NYC Department of Transportation bike and bus lane projects might affect small businesses in commercial corridors, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The team analyzed how other projects have impacted commercial corridors, identified domestic and international interventions that were successful in helping small businesses adapt, and conducted a survey of the BID’s merchants and its clients. The team produced a report providing recommendations for demonstrating how shifting away from car usage can produce a sustainable neighborhood and economy.