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Mayor Adams promises 40-mile greenway expansion, mostly along NYC waterfronts
By
Stephen Nessen
Published Oct 12, 2023
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NYC Mayor's Office
By
Stephen Nessen
Published Oct 12, 2023
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Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday said a new $7.25 million federal grant will help the city build 40 new miles of greenways, adding to the 150 miles already in place.
Unlike regular bike lanes placed on city streets, greenways are typically separated from traffic on dirt or paved roadways in or near parks where cars are banned.
“Going forward we know that the future is working with nature, reclaiming green spaces from all over New York and making sure that everyone can have the access that they deserve,” Adams said. “Many people have not cycled because they are afraid of the traffic and the flow of traffic. We want to make it easier.”
The planned greenways include one that runs 10 miles along the waterfront on Staten Island’s North Shore from the Goethals Bridge to the Verrazzano Bridge. Another would run 16 miles in Queens along the East River and Long Island Sound from Long Island City to College Point.
The plan would also improve cycling connections to JFK Airport with a new route through southern Queens, and a new 15-mile greenway in the South Bronx that connects areas like Hunts Point, Throgs Neck and Soundview to Randall's Island. The funding will also help pay for the ongoing expansion of the Harlem River Greenway in the Bronx, officials said.
Adams said that over the next two years the city will conduct extensive outreach in the local communities where the new paths are planned. Officials did not lay out a timeline for when the projects would be finished.
Adams' office released a map of proposed new routes or improvements to existing routes, but the mayor insisted their exact locations weren’t finalized.
A map of planned greenways Mayor Eric Adams says the city will eventually construct.
NYC Mayor's Office
“While the corridors have been identified, the exact street routes will be identified through a community engagement and planning process,” he said.
This administration has seen several street improvement plans halted entirely after community pushback, like a long-planned busway on Fordham Road in the Bronx. Projects have also been altered at the last minute after outcries from businesses connected to Adams, such as the street improvement projects on McGuinness Boulevard in Brooklyn.
Under Adams, the city's transportation department has also fallen short of installing 50 miles of protected bike lanes, as required by the Streets Master Plan passed by the City Council in 2019.
The DOT reports that 26 cyclists have been killed in crashes across the five boroughs so far this year, which is the most in a single year since the city launched its Vision Zero program in 2014 with the goal of reducing traffic deaths.
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new york city
transportation
Stephen Nessen
Stephen Nessen covers transportation. Since 2008 he has reported on everything from Occupy Wall Street, the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site, Hurricane Sandy, to Trump’s campaign for president. His transportation reporting has taken him everywhere from the MTA’s secret Rail Control Center to the gleaming subways of Seoul. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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