Photo via NYC Parks.
The Cherry Walk section of Riverside Park from 100th to 125th Street has reopened after being closed since late September. The area had been damaged in Hurricane Sandy and the restoration project was meant to fix the shoreline and repave fix cracks in the path, which is heavily used by bicyclists and pedestrians.
It was paid for by a $1.5 million FEMA grant.
In the interim, foot and bike traffic was redirected onto nearby streets.
Update: The walk wasn’t fully repaved. It’s expected to be repaved along with other northern sections starting in Fall 2022.
Could you imagine if the West Side Highway was closed for this length of time? Abominable that Parks delayed the closure by 1 month without notice and then it took 3 times as long as they expected.
In the future, NYC Parks should coordinate with DOT and take 2 lanes from the highway and convert them into pedestrian and cycling lanes to make up for the closure.
I’m happy they did these fixes, but ultimately this lane needs to be expanded to the same width that the cycling and pedestrian lane is further downtown, with separation between the uses, so I don’t have to bell all of the runners and walkers who can’t fit into the ~3′ wide pedestrian lane.
Infrastructure repairs, including road repairs, routinely take longer than projected.
Oh, and were you around when the original West Side Highway, south of 57 Street, failed?
I actually do remember the last time the West Side Highway was paved, in 2019. The entire roadway in both directions was never closed at any time.
I’m talking about something that happened in the 1970s and didn’t get fixed for at least 10 years.
has it in fact been fix and re-paved? any report from the field?
I ran on it this weekend. They didn’t resurface the whole thing, just big patch squares where the pavement was buckling. It’s fine. They didn’t even repaint the faded “lane” markings, and they didn’t paint at all where they replaced the path.
i’ve run it up and down. it’s not fully repaved. I’d estimate maybe 10% repaved or so.
Can’t wait to go for a walk and risk my life dodging speeding cyclists and E-bikes!
We should shut down one side of the West Side Highway every weekend. The people who live here need space more than people who live in Westchester need a faster commute. Eventually we should turn the whole highway into parkland. There’s plenty of room for cars on the avenues if we just got rid of parking there and kept parking in the garages and side streets. Think of the fresh air and outdoor space!
Yes..people wander in front of bikes. Yes, some people bike without regard for how densely populated the path can be (esp. weekends). As a walker and cyclist I’d throw in that leased dogs are a pain too. I love cycling safely away from dog walkers only to have Mr. Whiskersworth bolt in front of me with a 30 foot leash. Anyone can complain but we all have a responsibility.
I agree 100% but really want to know where I can lease a dog …
Can’t wait to go for a bike ride and have a jogger cut in front of me without looking.
Yes. It’s not relaxing when you have to keep checking for bikes whizzing by. Even sitting on the bench right at Cherry walk entrance you have to be careful standing up to be sure a bike isn’t going to smash into you. It needs to be widened. Yes to taking some space from the highway.
Two ways for the city to start cutting into the deficit: enforce no E-bikes or E-scooters on the path, and also enforce the no bikes period rule further south.
If you have to keep checking for bikes whizzing by, then you’re walking on the wrong side of the path.
I agree with Crankypants. It is not a pleasant walk at all. Way too stressful. Too bad, very pretty.
The path needs to be widened and separated. If they have to take a lane from the 6 lane highway, so be it.
You do come off as a Crankypants.
Some cyclists may act like entitled jerks buzzing past you, but most don’t. Some pedestrians meander aimlessly across the path but most don’t. I’m glad most of us act responsibly and can share our way together along the river.
I will be fishing off there when the weather improves.
Cause why fix something once when you can fix it twice?
Do tree roots only grow during tropical storms? Much good work was done to fix the path. Its piecemeal but good. A complete repaving should not occur. I’d prefer a maintenance approach to deal with issues as they happen. Very little Sandy remediation was done. We got a few nice plantings.
The reopening is good news. I love riverside park just as so many other westside’s do. Bathrooms need to be opened up for public use along the 100th to 125th St. Corridor.
Thank you,
Norma
Cherry Walk continues to be a nasty accident waiting to happen.
There is a wide lane for two-way wheel traffic (bicycles and skateboards) and a narrow lane for two-way pedestrian traffic (runners and walkers). One is hard-pressed to realize this as the road markings have not been legible for several years and the painted divider (it used to be green…. remember?) has totally faded. Hence, many northbound runners inadvertently use the bicycle lane, and many southbound cyclists use the runners’ lane. An open door to disaster. A thorough signage paint effort would go a long way to preventing possible accidents. I have flagged this danger to the Riverside Park Conservancy more than once when making my annual donation and was promised in writing that the issue would be addressed. Still waiting.
In addition, speed bumps (or dips) should be installed to tame those cyclists who feel that faster and wilder is better. Granted, only a small minority of cyclists behave like that, but they make life miserable and dangerous for people trying to enjoy a casual walk or jog.
Looks like park users’ safety may not be a top concern for the Riverside Park Conservancy.