The question applies to any city with lots of really tall, big buildings, really. I figure that all those tall buildings would get in the way of the wind, like they make some kind of artificial lee. I’ve never been in a big city like that.
Yes, it absolutely gets windy in NYC.
Remember that Manhattan is laid out in a very regular grid. This is equally useful if you are a poetic zepher of wind or a becaped superhero, as these long passages make it really easy to (traffic allowing) rush forward at full speed and little chance of hitting a wall.
This made me wonder why wind is never a factor in any of the Spider-Man stories. Even though it’s actually a spider’s main method of transportation.
That was one of the first things I noticed when visiting north America. The grid really does make cities super windy compared to the cities I’m used to, which grew naturally over centuries and aren’t on a grid. And I’m from a city that’s pretty windy for geographical reasons. Still doesn’t compare.
They don’t block the wind so much as funnel it down the streets between them. But I don’t think NYC gets as windy as Chicago. There’s a reason it’s called “the windy city.”
Not only is it windy, it’s cold as fuck when you’re standing in the shadow of a building, even in the summer. And there are a lot of buildings blocking the sun in NYC.
NYC was very windy when I visited and the direction would change between blocks. Made using an umbrella a bit of a pain. The buildings created more like a tunnel effect than blocking it.
Lived in Chicagoland. It can go both ways. The buildings channel wind but blunt it at the same time. You can be on a street with no wind, turn the corner and get blown away. I can say for sure is that the open plains south of the city are far windier.
Chicago’s probably not the best example because it’s basically on the shore of an inland sea so they get “lake effect” weather. Downtown weather can be very different from just 15-20 miles away.
Chicago is called the windy city for a reason.
Tall buildings can block or funnel wind which can lead to smoggy and stormy areas. I assume at least Manhattan will have enough wind due to location and layout. However other cities that have a more medieval layout may have problematic areas. Most cities will do some kind of climate planning, I.e. where do wind and water go, are there any hot areas, etc. Here’s the starting page Frankfurts urban climate plan for air ducts for example. If you google „urban climate planning“ you’ll find tons of examples including NYC.
It depends on where you are, but the huge grids of Manhattan can definitely be windy. They’re essentially big straight channels with nothing to block an air current.
I never really think about it, but yeah its pretty windy
No, it’s only windy in Chicago. That’s why it’s called the ‘windy city’. No further questions.
Don’t know, I’ve never been to the US.
Then why bother commenting? You’ve contributed nothing useful to the conversation.
Surely it’s no stupid answers too
Thanks for your feedback
But have you ever been downtown in any big city with lots of skyscrapers? The subheader of the question asks about those as well, and since the consensus is that NYC can be very windy because the grid funnels the wind (I’ve experienced it myself) it would be interesting to know if an older circular-walled city origin would cause the modern skyscrapers (planted in old lots) to block the wind more effectively, for instance. Meanwhile, The street grid of old Spanish Los Angeles was deliberately laid out at a 45-degree angle to the cardinal directions to maximize sunlight and wind circulation. This was done in accordance with the Laws of the Indies, a set of planning regulations decreed by the Spanish crown in 1573 for all colonial settlements. This older, angled grid is still visible in the city’s downtown core, where it clashes with the standard north-south-east-west grid introduced after the American takeover.
