CONCRETE barriers have been installed along the streets surrounding Trump Tower. Police have blanketed the area, setting up security checkpoints. Metal barricades corral pedestrians. The media are penned across the road from the tower, while their satellite trucks are parked round the corner on busy 57th Street. Two of Fifth Avenue’s five traffic lanes are closed. Part of East 56th Street (the main entrance to Mr Trump’s penthouse) is closed indefinitely to both vehicles and pedestrians.

Traffic is nothing new to New Yorkers. Sam Schwartz, a transport engineer, likes to joke about the two New Yorkers who asked each other, “Should we walk or do we have time to take a cab?” He thinks the mess could hasten the introduction of congestion pricing. New Yorkers are also accustomed to high-profile visitors, like President Barack Obama, causing temporary chaos. The new gridlock may last much longer. Mr Trump’s wife and youngest son, who is still at primary school, may continue to live in their Trump Tower penthouse. Mr Trump likes to sleep in his own bed, which suggests he will often come back from Washington. The added security comes at a cost. CNN reports that New York city spends $1m a day to protect the Trumps. Bill de Blasio, the mayor, refused to confirm this figure, but has said that the city deserves “a substantial amount of reimbursement” from the federal government.

Since the election, protesters, the press and gawkers flocking to the tower have made it difficult for local businesses to operate. Already crowded pavements are becoming clogged with selfie-takers. None of the high-end retailers along the avenue would comment on whether they are feeling a pinch, but they must be.

People living and working in Trump Tower and the surrounding streets have to navigate checkpoints to get to work or home again. The tower’s atrium is still open to members of the public prepared to endure airport-style security. “In the long term, having Trump on Fifth Avenue will help retailers,” says Michael Shvo, owner of the Crown Building which sits across the street from the tower. He reasons that tourists will still flock there, wallets open, after the chief occupant leaves for the White House. Fifth Avenue is still open for business. But as Yogi Berra once said, “Nobody goes there any more. It’s too crowded.”