As part of Car-Free Earth Day, join Van Alen for Crossroads Conversations, a public program that invites passersby to participate in spontaneous 10-minute conversations. At a time of heightened political polarization, Crossroads Conversations encourages strangers from across the nation and around the globe to reveal multifaceted personal beliefs, provoke robust debate, and find common ground with people who may share differing perspectives in a vibrant public space.

During NYC Department of Transportation‘s annual car-free event on April 21st, we held the sixth edition of Crossroads Conversations. From our prime location in the Flatiron Plaza at 23rd street, we invited folks walking, biking, and generally moving around a temporarily motor vehicle-free Broadway to join in a public 10-minute conversation with a fellow stranger about NYC transportation and what a “car-free” city might mean for them.