Street congestion is increasingly a problem, not so much because it slows down private cars but because it slows down buses. Those bus delays in turn increase subway ridership, and overcrowding slows trains loading and unloading.<p>Although uber does probably deserve some of the blame the mayor&#x27;s attempted response was ham-fisted and bound the fail. The answer is a congestion fee like Bloomberg wanted to put in. Also eliminating most city employee parking permits and upping the cost of on-street parking to prevent circling.<p>As for the subway, it depends on the line. The Lexington Avenue line is the most overcrowded. More trains can&#x27;t be added at this point -- at least not without CBTC (which they should really prioritize more!) The second avenue subway should help there, but that&#x27;s not exactly around the corner either. After the Lexington Line the next most congested is the L, which is only relevant to a small part of Manhattan (but has big implications for growth in northern Brooklyn) and the E&#x2F;F coming in from Queens until it hits midtown. That leaves the majority of Manhattan with spare subway capacity to move people around.<p>Specifically with respect to the East Village, it is because of crowding on the Lexington line that I suggested densification should start at the south-west part of the neighborhood which has access to the sixth avenue line subways.