One of Transportation Alternatives' weekly demonstrations demanding 24-hour bike and pedestrian access to the Queensboro Bridge, 1990. Photo: Doug Goodman.

Status of NYC Bridges

Read the latest news on this subject.

Neither the city agencies nor the two public authorities charged with maintaining specific bridges have an official policy on bike-pedestrian paths (although DoT's Bureau of Bridges is supposed to devise a bike action plan as part of DoT's bicycle policy). Because bridge designers and maintenance workers generally view the bridges from the motorist's perspective, they tend not to be attuned to the needs of cyclists or pedestrians unless those needs are forcefully pointed out. As a result, many of the improvements put in place over the past decade are the direct result of suggestions and pressure from Transportation Alternatives.

The following section discusses the current status of cyclist and pedestrian access to the city's major bridges, and proposed improvements.

NEW YORK CITY BRIDGES

	Fully Ramped	Well Lit	Well Swept	Paving Quality	Adequate Width
Brooklyn					~
George Washington					~
Triborough				~
Bayonne					~
Goethals
Marine Pkwy.		~
Queensboro
Williamsburg
Henry Hudson		~	~	~
North Channel		~
Veterans Mem.		~
Not currently bikeable: Whitestone, Verrazano, Throgs Neck, Outerbridge, Manhattan.   Note: for the current status of bridges, please see our guide to bridge crossings, which is regularly updated, or, for a quick overview, check our "maps" page.

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a) A City of Bridges
 Status of NYC Bridges
c) Bikeable Bridges in Good Condition
d) Usable Bridges with Stairway Obstacles
e) Bikeable With Difficulty
f) Not Currently Bikeable
g) Small and Midsized Bridges
h) Security and Lighting
i) Chapter 5 Recommendations