West Street pedestrian bridges

Tribeca Bridge, seen from Chambers Street

The West Street pedestrian bridges are pedestrian bridges that cross the West Side Highway to connect Tribeca and the Financial District of Lower Manhattan with Battery Park City. The bridges were built to allow for alternatives to crossing the busy street. Prior to the September 11th attacks, there were a total of three bridges at these locations: Chambers Street, Vesey Street and Liberty Street. The Vesey Street and Liberty Street bridges connected the former World Trade Center complex directly to the World Financial Center.

The collapse of the Twin Towers destroyed the Vesey Street bridge and heavily damaged the Liberty Street bridge. To improve pedestrian flow, a new bridge was built at Rector Street. Originally it was planned to be temporary, so that a new bridge further south could be built, it has now become permanent.[1] A temporary bridge at Vesey Street opened in November 2003 near the site of its predecessor. Currently, all bridges have ADA access.


Tribeca Bridge

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tribeca Bridge.
Tribeca Bridge, interior

The Chambers Street Bridge (40°43′2.5″N 74°0′46″W / 40.717361°N 74.01278°W) or the Tribeca Bridge, was built in 1994[2] to improve connections for the northern part of Battery Park City. It connects Stuyvesant High School inside Battery Park City and the property of the Borough of Manhattan Community College. Although an exit to the street level on the Battery Park City side of the span exists, the bridge connects directly into Stuyvesant High School, making it a favorable point of access for many of the students there. Designed by Skidmore Owings and Merrill, its lighting display at night has earned it the 1996 IES/NY Lumen Lighting Award.[3]

Vesey Street Bridge

North bridge, built 2003

The first Vesey Street Bridge (40°42′49″N 74°0′49″W / 40.71361°N 74.01361°W), or North Bridge, connected the above-ground concourse of the former World Trade Center complex with the World Financial Center,[4] paralleling nearby Vesey Street. It began at a point between 1 WTC and 6 WTC linking the upper levels of the Winter Garden Atrium. The grand marble staircase inside the Winter Garden pavilion provided access to the lower levels of the building and to the adjacent waterfront.[5] The bridge was destroyed in the collapse of 1 WTC during the September 11th attacks.[6]

Because the intersection of Vesey Street and West Street was closed to pedestrians due to the September 11th attacks,[7] ground for a temporary Vesey Street Bridge was broken in August 2003 by then-Governor George E. Pataki.[8] The bridge opened on November 2003 in time for the return of the PATH train to the temporary terminal by the WTC site[9] and connected the southwest corner of Vesey Street and West Street, next to 3 WFC, with the northeast corner, next to 140 West Street (Verizon Building).

The Vesey Street bridge was designed with ADA accessibility in mind, and escalators were installed to allow pedestrians access the bridge without using stairs. The escalator by the World Financial Center, at the western end, opened on April 16, 2004.[10] They were followed by the escalator on the eastern side in June 2004.[11] The elevators at either end opened in the same summer. The elevators and escalators were prone to problems, and an escalator was closed for six months due to a failure.[12] The bridge was met criticism for the breakdowns and also bridge closures due to construction activity at the 1 WTC construction site.[13] Thus residents from the Battery Park City area clamored for the reopening of the Vesey Street walkways across West Street, as an alternative to the bridge. (The elevator and escalator on the east side of the Vesey Street bridge were inoperable for an extended period of time forcing individuals who are unable to climb stairs to cross at Murray Street, which is north of Vesey Street.)

The bridge was finally closed and taken apart on October 7, 2013. At the same time, the crosswalk on the north side of Vesey Street was reopened,[14] The bridge has been replaced by the West Concourse of the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, an underground passageway connecting the World Financial Center with the World Trade Center PATH station. This will eventually connect to the Fulton Center via the Dey Street Passageway when the WTC Transportation Hub is completed. As of October 2013, the temporary bridge has been demolished[15] and replaced by a pedestrian crosswalk.[16]

Liberty Street Bridge

The original incarnation of the Liberty Street Bridge(40°42′38″N 74°0′53″W / 40.71056°N 74.01472°W), was called the South Bridge, as it was seen as a companion to its Vesey Street counterpart and had a similar design. Due to the attacks, it had sustained significant damage. However, unlike its counterpart, it was extended and repaired and was reopened in April 2002.[17] Since then, the bridge has been revamped and rerouted, due to its location near the World Trade Center site and the construction activity for the Vehicle Security Center and the demolition of the Deutsche Bank Building at 130 Liberty Street. On April 21, 2010, the eastern bridge access point was shifted onto the east side of West Street, from Liberty Street. A pre-fabricated segment was attached to the existing bridge, for use while construction proceeds on both sides along Liberty Street. The new pre-fabricated southward extension was fitted with an elevator for ADA accessibility.[18] It will be connected to the Liberty Park when the latter is complete.

Rector Street Bridge

With the destruction of the North Bridge and the closure of the South Bridge due to the terrorist attacks, Battery Park City residents sought for safe passage across West Street in the immediate months following September 11, 2001. The Rector Street Bridge (40°42.45′N 74°0.915′W / 40.70750°N 74.015250°W) was seen as a temporary solution, as it was planned that a bridge further south would open in its place in the near future. The bridge was designed by SHoP Architects and opened in August 2002. The bridge has a span of 230 feet (70 m), with a 170 feet (52 m) ramp on the western end of the bridge.. Much of the bridge was built from pre-fabricated materials, the design of the bridge was a steel box truss system.[19] The panels surrounding the bridge allow natural light to flow through, but it limits the view to disallow people from using it to view the World Trade Center site.[20] In 2006, the New York State Department of Transportation released its proposal to reconstruct West Street into a promenade. The plans do not feature a permanent replacement, suggesting that the first Rector Street Bridge may be permanent. However a renovation was planned then, to keep the bridge in place for another ten years.[21]

Billed by SHoP Architects as "Rector Street Bridge #2", this structure was in fact the renovated version of the bridge.[22] The renovated structure had the truss system replaced by a canopy, that would allow views. However during its immediate opening in October 9, 2009,[23] the elevators were unusable, drawing some outrage from Battery Park City residents.[24] Although designs have been submitted for a permanent bridge at West Thames Street,[25] near the entrance of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, it is unsure if the renovated Rector Street Bridge would be demolished in lieu for this bridge. As no timeline has been provided yet, it is also unclear when the West Thames Street Bridge will be opened.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "Rector Street Bridge". Tribecatrib.com. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  2. ↑ "Tribeca Bridge". Wirednewyork.com. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  3. ↑ "Tribeca Bridge". Dgalight.com. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  4. ↑ "3 World Financial Center. American Express". Wired New York. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  5. ↑ "NY Boat Charters Directions". Nyyachtcharter.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  6. ↑ "Ask the Port Authority - Mark Pagliettini Answers World Trade Center Questions". Panynj.gov. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  7. ↑ "Crossing Vesey Street remains problematic". Downtown Express. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  8. ↑ "Lower Manhattan Development Corporation - GOVERNOR BREAKS GROUND ON VESEY STREET PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE". Renewnyc.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  9. ↑ DAVID W. DUNLAP Published: November 24, 2003 (2003-11-24). "Vesey Street Bridge Opens to Quiet, but Grateful, Crowd - New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  10. ↑ "Vesey elevators coming this summer to a bridge near you". Downtownexpress.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  11. ↑ "Lower Manhattan : News | Rebuilding Milestones, Sept. 2003 to Sept. 2004". Lowermanhattan.info. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  12. ↑ "Vesey Street Bridge Escalator Operational After Months of Delays - DNAinfo.com New York". Dnainfo.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  13. ↑ "Port Authority Closes Vesey Street Bridge - SoHo TriBeCa & FiDi Local News - Frances Milliken". Newyork.nearsay.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  14. ↑ "10/7/13 CLOSED: Vesey Street Pedestrian Bridge". Brookfieldplaceny.com. 2012-08-13. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
  15. ↑ "Vesey Street Pedestrian Bridge is Coming Down, Brookfield Cube Almost Complete". Ebroadsheet.com. 2013-10-09. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
  16. ↑ "Pedestrian Bridge Near WTC Finally Being Removed as Crosswalk Reopens - Battery Park City - DNAinfo.com New York". Dnainfo.com. 2013-10-11. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
  17. ↑ Paul H.B. Shin (2002-04-21). "Footbridge Near Wtc Site Reopens - New York Daily News". Articles.nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  18. ↑ https://www.dot.ny.gov/route9a/bridge
  19. ↑ "Rector Street Bridge" (PDF). Shoparc.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  20. ↑ Ringen, Jonathan. "Bridging the Divide | Metropolis Magazine | July 2002". Metropolismag.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  21. ↑ "Rector Street Bridge". Tribecatrib.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  22. ↑ "Rector Street Bridge #2" (PDF). Shoparc.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  23. ↑ "Re-opening the Rector Street Bridge! | New York State Senate". Nysenate.gov. 2009-10-27. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  24. ↑ Hovitz, Helaina N. "Rector St. bridge reopens, elevator still a work in progress". Downtownexpress.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  25. ↑ "West Thames Street Pedestrian Bridge" (PDF). Shoparc.com. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  26. ↑ "Lower Manhattan : News | New Vision for the Rector Street Bridge". Lowermanhattan.info. 2009-06-18. Retrieved 2012-10-02.

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