This Hudson River Greenway Detour Has Lasted Five Months Longer Than Planned

In November, the Parks Department closed off 11 blocks of the Hudson River Greenway bike path between 59th Street and 70th Street for construction with little public notice. Cyclists were directed to take the nearby pedestrian path. At the time, agency reps told Streetsblog the detour would wrap up in “the next few weeks.”

Six months later, as greenway usage swells with the arrival of warm weather, the detour is still in effect. It is expected to last until the end of the month, according to a Parks Department spokesperson.

Construction actually paused in December with the onset of winter temperatures, but the Parks Department opted to keep the detour in place.

“So not to open and close the bike lane between phases, we determined keeping it closed through full completion of this phase was the safest and most efficient way to proceed,” the agency said in an email.

The construction work necessitating the closure is part of the fifth phase of the city’s capital reconstruction of Riverside Park South, which began in 2016. Although the current round of work is scheduled to wrap up at the end of this month, more closures are expected in the fall for minor “punch list items,” including lighting and lane markings, the Parks Department said.