A surprise: NYPD guarding Atlantic Avenue no-standing lane outside arena, for now (?) no longer used (with one exception) as private parking

Thursday night 11/11/21, on the evening of a Disney on Ice show, I walked by the Barclays Center and noticed something surprising.

The no-standing lane outside the arena on Atlantic Avenue and the lay-by lane outside the arena on Flatbush Avenue had virtually no vehicles outside NYPD ones, rather than--as on Atlantic--a line of vehicles long used for de facto private parking.

So I sent a question for the upcoming Quality of Life meeting Tuesday: Was this policy change instituted by the arena? By NYPD? What's the rationale?

After all, it's unlikely that the arena operators voluntarily sacrificed improper-but-allowed use of public space that has been assisting with their operations.

And, as shown in the photo on the left, there was one private vehicle in the no-standing lane, helpfully surrounded by orange traffic cones.

A careful inspection of the front windshield revealed a yellow vest emblazoned with the words "Pedestrian Safety"--in other words, it was the vehicle of a private contractor working on behalf of the arena.