Mayor Mamdani should fund and expand New York City's deteriorating collection of bike and pedestrian greenways, according to advocates who assembled a scorecard to grade the new mayor's efforts and highlight where he needs to improve and build out the city's green infrastructure.
The detailed checklist by the NYC Greenways Coalition highlights a number of measures and interventions the new mayor can pursue within three separate timeframes: His first 100 days, his first year, and his first term. Given Mamdani's love of cycling, the boosters believe Hizzoner will repair and lengthen the dilapidated paths to complete a sprawling, five-borough network of safe cycling and walking routes.
"Walking and cycling and micromobility are the least expensive ways to get around New York City and so they should be prioritized," said Hunter Armstrong, executive director of the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative, which is a leading member of the citywide coalition. "[Greenways] are assets that everyone uses, and so it just seems like a no-brainer to me."
Greenways serve as both recreational paths and key transportation arteries, but they take ages to build. Various agencies manage different sections, and the largest operator is the chronically underfunded Parks Department, which often treats its paths like an afterthought.
Some greenways are better than others. New Yorkers rave about the Hudson River Greenway on the West Side of Manhattan, while other paths, like the busted up 19th-century Ocean Parkway malls in southern Brooklyn, mostly serve as depressing reminders of municipal neglect.
When greenways fall into serious disrepair, the city routinely reroutes cyclists onto dangerous detours. Seemingly simple repair projects can linger for bizarrely long amounts of time. One such project, to fix a small pedestrian and bike bridge in Washington Heights, has lasted longer than the construction of the entire Brooklyn Bridge.
Last summer, the city released a Council-mandated greenway master plan that teed up current and future projects for a more ambitious City Hall. But officials still need to dedicate funding and staff to make those plans a reality and ensure solid upkeep of the new paths.
The first 100 days
Within Mamdani's first 100 days — by April 10, for those counting — he should convene a task force within the mayor's office dedicated to greenways and commit to fully funding agencies maintaining different sections, including the Parks Department and the Department of Transportation, according to the NYC Greenways Coalition's scorecard.
The same scorecard recommends that the mayor tweak zoning rules so that developers open their waterfront esplanades to cyclists. Current city regulations only require developers to permit pedestrian access.
The checklist points out several existing or low-effort projects that Mamdani could fast-track. These include completing the Harlem River Greenway in the Bronx and letting bikes on park paths in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens.
"We wanted to very publicly state what we think is a priority, and what we think is doable within these timeframes." Armstrong said. "Any new administration wants some easy wins."
The first year
For 2026, the scorecard provides a lengthy list of projects for Mayor Mamdani to pursue, including:
The Bronx: Fill in gaps on the Mosholu-Pelham Greenway crossings over the Hutchinson River Parkway, and building the first section of a new greenway along the waterfront at the 132nd Street pier.
Manhattan: Create better detours for closed-off portions of greenway along the East River near Chinatown in Manhattan.
Brooklyn: Connect the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway in Coney Island and Sunset Park, and expand capacity of the busy Kent Avenue bike lanes in Williamsburg.
Queens: Extend the Vanderbilt Motor Parkway to connect to the Long Island Greenway, and patch gaps in protected paths on Vernon Boulevard and at the Pulaski Bridge.
Staten Island: Connect the St. George Ferry Terminal to the Goethals Bridge and the Bayonne Bridge with a greenway.
The first term
Beyond that, the greenway advocates said Mamdani should complete several more involved projects in his first term and fund at least 20 gap connector initiatives.
These include the construction of a continuous greenway on the Queens waterfront and the installation of an actual greenway on the Harlem River's Bronx shore — not the on-street bike lanes that former Mayor Adams preferred.
The city should also upgrade upper Manhattan's decaying greenways and connect the gaps around the top of the island. And because the city's best greenways tend to be in wealthier areas, advocates say at least half of the greenway funding should go to low-income environmental justice communities.
The advocates are optimistic about Mamdani's choice for DOT Commissioner, Michael Flynn. His previous employer, the consultancy TYLin, worked on the greenway master plan, so the top transportation official will be intimately familiar with the work ahead, according to Armstrong.
"[Mamdani] has appointed someone who is incredibly knowledgeable about this and personally wants to see the greenway system improve and advance," Armstrong said.
DOT told Streetsblog the agency will review the report card, and that officials are working across agencies to make the city's greenways "world-class."
"Greenways are some of the most cherished public spaces in the city, providing New Yorkers the opportunity to commute and exercise safely and cheaply, either surrounded by trees or along our waterfronts," said spokesperson Will Livingston. "That’s why the city is undergoing a historic greenway expansion for all five boroughs—and as part of that process we are working with our sister agencies on ways we can improve maintenance and deliver a next generation of greenways that are world-class."
