Shutting Down Broadway (Avenue)

According to the New York Times, Mayor Bloomberg will announce today (Thursday) that Broadway Avenue around Times Square will be closed to traffic beginning in May and lasting at least until the end of the year. The cross streets and 7th Avenue will be open to traffic, but the closed portions will be filled with benches and cafe tables with umbrellas. I guess they're going for the European look.

This sounds cool, but it's a shame that the only people who'll get to enjoy the new plazas will be the throngs of tourists that make Times Square totally unappealing to the rest of us. That place is mobbed enough as it is.

UPDATE: Apparently they're doing the same thing to Herald Square, which is around 33rd and Broadway. Cool.