Physical Features
New York City's climate is temperate, meaning that they typically have mild summer, but very cold winters. The highest average temperature was 42°C, recorded in 1926, and the lowest temperature recorded Manhattan, the centre of New York, was once marshland that is unsuitable to build on. The island was filled in to create more plots of land to build housing onto. Manhattan has since expanded upon its borders, it has expanded over 400 metres on each side. New York no more land to expand upon, so its only option is to increase density or to reclaim more land from rivers.
New York City is at risk from destructive storms and hurricanes that form in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean. We saw this when Hurricane Sandy, a category 3 major hurricane ripped through New York City, flooding low lying streets, reclaimed land, tunnels, bridges and subways. $20 billion dollars of property damage was made and there are estimates that $10-30 billion dollars of business was lost.
New York City is at risk from destructive storms and hurricanes that form in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean. We saw this when Hurricane Sandy, a category 3 major hurricane ripped through New York City, flooding low lying streets, reclaimed land, tunnels, bridges and subways. $20 billion dollars of property damage was made and there are estimates that $10-30 billion dollars of business was lost.
Overcrowding
Overcrowding in New York City has worsened significantly as the city's population growth doesn't show any signs of slowing down. The city is also in the midst of a housing crisis, meaning that there are not enough apartments being built to keep up with the demand for new housing. The market has also worsened the problem by building more studio apartments than anything else, when the market is asking for more large apartments for families to move into. The amount of studio apartments with three or more people in them has jumped by 579 percent since 2005. The rent for apartment has also skyrocketed, forcing low-income families to move further out of the centre of the city or try to cram their children into a studio apartment.
New York's sidewalks are packed with people moving towards their jobs in Midtown Manhattan, forcing them onto the streets. During peak hours, many pedestrians are forced to walk in bicycle paths or even on the road to avoid the sidewalk crammed with business men and women making their ways to their places of work. New York's subways are also suffering, with a surge of ridership pushing the L line and similar services going through Manhattan and Brooklyn to its limits.
New York's sidewalks are packed with people moving towards their jobs in Midtown Manhattan, forcing them onto the streets. During peak hours, many pedestrians are forced to walk in bicycle paths or even on the road to avoid the sidewalk crammed with business men and women making their ways to their places of work. New York's subways are also suffering, with a surge of ridership pushing the L line and similar services going through Manhattan and Brooklyn to its limits.
Pollution
New York is one of the most energy efficient cities in the U.S, on average consuming half of the amount of electricity per person than someone living in San Francisco. Its dense population, large mass transit system and low car dependence has led to a dense population produces less carbon dioxide on average. Although they do produce less carbon dioxide than other major U.S. cities, their dense population has led to concentrated pollution, a side-effect of that being a high level of asthma and other respiratory illnesses in the city.
Infrastructure Issues
Much of New York City's infrastructure suffers from neglect as more and more of the city's bridges, roads and train systems are struggling to keep up with growing populations. Every day, more than 2.7 million cars drive across bridges that have been designated as 'fracture critical', meaning that they are 'structurally deficient', or in need of maintenance and repairs. On the subway, 37% of the signals used by trains have reached or have exceeded their 50-year usefulness life, meaning that the subway suffers from many delays and stoppages caused by an outdated system. Much of the water mains and sewers of New York City are over a hundred years old, meaning that New Yorkers suffer from losing, on average, 25% of water to leaks and cracks before it can reach the tap. Gas leaks caused by old gas mains have also caused havoc in the city, when an explosion caused by a gas leak killed seven and injured sixty in 2014.
Government Issues
There have been no government issues for New York in the past decade. Mayor Bloomberg saw a major transition for New York in terms of the modernization of Manhattan and the densification of Brooklyn.
On the more minor side protests have been in the news recently about the new Republican President-elect Donald Trump, as New York City is a city which is strongly Democrat and Trump will be putting policies which are against the majority vote in New York City.
On the more minor side protests have been in the news recently about the new Republican President-elect Donald Trump, as New York City is a city which is strongly Democrat and Trump will be putting policies which are against the majority vote in New York City.