Dyer Avenue

Dyer Avenue at 41st Street; the gray brick building in the center background is for the 7 Subway Extension

Dyer Avenue is a short, north-south thoroughfare in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, located between Ninth Avenue and Tenth Avenue. It is primarily used by traffic exiting the Lincoln Tunnel. Dyer Avenue runs between West 34th Street and West 42nd Street but functions as two distinct sections due to its connections with the south and center tubes of the Lincoln Tunnel. The at-grade portion of the Lincoln Tunnel Expressway between West 30th Street and West 31st Street is also referred to by street signs as "Dyer Avenue." The roadway is owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.[1]

Description

South of West 38th Street, Dyer Avenue is used by southbound vehicles exiting the south tube of the Lincoln Tunnel. Traffic exiting the center tube of the Lincoln Tunnel may also access Dyer Avenue by using an exit ramp from the Lincoln Tunnel Expressway that merges with Dyer Avenue before its intersection with West 36th Street. At this intersection, there is also a southbound entrance ramp to the Lincoln Tunnel Expressway. This ramp permits traffic from the south tube of the tunnel to access the expressway, however the amount of traffic using this entrance ramp is relatively low because the Lincoln Tunnel Expressway ends a few blocks to the south at West 30th Street and was never connected to the proposed Mid-Manhattan Expressway.[2]

Although Dyer Avenue is mainly used by vehicles exiting the Lincoln Tunnel, drivers entering the tunnel can travel northbound on Dyer Avenue for a brief segment between West 34th Street and West 36th Street. These vehicles merge with other vehicles from a loop ramp from Ninth Avenue that continues to the Lincoln Tunnel Expressway and provides access to the center and north tubes of the Lincoln Tunnel.

North of West 39th Street, Dyer Avenue is used by northbound vehicles exiting the south and center tubes of the Lincoln Tunnel. Before the intersection with West 40th Street, there are direct ramps leading up to the Port Authority Bus Terminal that are used by buses (to the upper levels of the terminal's north and south wings) and cars (to the parking garage above the south wing of the terminal). Another large parking garage is located on West 42nd Street, opposite the end of Dyer Avenue. Squeegee men used to target motorists stopped at traffic signals in this area.[3] The northern section of Dyer Avenue previously had a contraflow lane for buses to access the center tube of the Lincoln Tunnel during the evening rush hour on weekdays.[4]

History

Dyer Avenue is named after General George Rathborne Dyer, who was the chairman of the board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and died while the Lincoln Tunnel was under construction.[5] A number of buildings in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood were demolished in order to construct the 75-foot-wide (23 m) right-of-way of the new avenue and provide access to the Lincoln Tunnel, of which the first (now the center) tube opened in December 1937.[6]

In 2003, as part of the Hudson Yards Redevelopment Project, the New York City Department of City Planning issued a master plan that envisioned the creation of a network of open space between Ninth Avenue and Tenth Avenue to create a park system from West 39th Street to West 34th Street, portions of which would be located along Dyer Avenue.[7]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.panynj.gov/press-room/press-item.cfm?headLine_id=2072
  2. ↑ "Lincoln Tunnel". nycroads.com. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
  3. ↑ Barry, Dan (June 24, 2006). "Squeegee Men, Still Around, Still Relentless". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
  4. ↑ "Significant Changes to Lincoln Tunnel Weeknight Access in New York City to Begin Next Week" (Press release). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. October 29, 2003. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
  5. ↑ Moscow, Henry (1990). The Street Book: An Encyclopedia of Manhattan's Street Names and Their Origins. New York: Fordham University Press. p. 46. ISBN 0-8232-1275-0.
  6. ↑ Whyte, William H. (1995) [1939]. The WPA Guide to New York City: The Federal Writers' Project Guide to 1930s New York. New York: New Press. p. 156. ISBN 1-56584-321-5.
  7. ↑ "Hudson Yards Master Plan: Preferred Direction" (PDF). New York City Department of City Planning. February 2003. Retrieved 2009-08-10.

Coordinates: 40°45′19.54″N 73°59′47.35″W / 40.7554278°N 73.9964861°W