Inwood and Washington Heights Livable Streets

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Overview

Welcome! Our working group's mission is to promote healthier and more livable neighborhoods in Inwood and Washington Heights through through street redesign, infrastructure changes, and public policy initiatives that favor pedestrianism, bicycling, and mass transit use. Simply put, we want to make it easier for everyone in these communities to "walk more, bike more, ride mass transit more, drive less." Why? Because when people walk more, bike more, ride mass transit more, and drive less, they reduce the harmful impacts of large-scale automobile use on our community (such as, pollution, noise, human injuries and fatalities, and dependence on foreign oil) and, by their own power to walk or bike, they improve their health. Inwood and Washington Heights are also areas that are well-served by mass transit, where the majority of residents do not drive, and we want to build on those strengths, rather than increase automobile dependency.

If it seems that this group spends a lot of time focusing on bicycling initiatives, it's because of the three sustainable transportation modes, bicycling is the least well-served by our current infrastructure and has the most room for improvement and growth. Those of us who commute by bike are too aware of how dangerous it can be to ride on city streets and that it doesn't have to be this way: a visit to European cities like Amsterdam and Copenhagen demonstrates how a well-designed bicycling infrastructure encourages large portions of the population to commute by bicycle, including children and seniors, in a densely populated urban environment. But we are also concerned about improvements to the pedestrian landscape (wider sidewalks, bulb outs, traffic calming, etc.) and mass transit service.

About Inwood and Washington Heights

Inwood is the northernmost neighborhood of Manhattan island and runs from Dyckman Street to 220th Street. It was originally home to a major settlement of the Lenape tribe, then mostly farms (including the Dyckman House, c. 1784, the only remaining Dutch colonial farm house in Manhattan) until a building boom in the early 20th century when the IRT (1) and IND (A) trains reached the neighborhood. Inwood and Washington Heights have the largest concentration of Art Deco apartment houses in Manhattan and join the Art Deco districts in Miami Beach and the Bronx’s Grand Concourse in its significance and scope.

Mass Transit

Subway

Inwood is served by both the A and 1 trains. The A runs from 207th St to Ozone Park or Far Rockway in Queens and features express service from 168th St to Euclid Avenue in Brooklyn. It is the longest subway line in the New York City system. The 1 train runs from 242nd St in the Bronx to South Ferry.

Issues:

For the past two years, the A train has been undergoing extensive service work, which particularly affects Inwood residents, as the stretch from 168th St in Washington Heights to 207th St is regularly replaced late nights (after 11 p.m.) and weekends by either a separate subway connector or a free shuttle bus. This can result in significant inconveniences and delays for Inwood residents traveling to lower Manhattan or Brooklyn.
The 1 train suffers from overcrowding and passengers may not be able to board. Recently, the MTA has promised added service on the 1 line. Generally, service work on the 1 train does not affect Inwood stations. The elevated 1 train stops at Dyckman, 207th, and 215th Streets do not have elevator access.

Bus

Inwood is served by the following local bus lines providing connections to lower Manhattan:

M100 to East Harlem

Inwood is served by the following local bus lines providing connections to the Bronx:

Bx7 and Bx 20 to Riverdale
Bx12 to Bay Plaza via Fordham Road (in July 2008, this will be replaced by Select Bus Service, the first Bus Rapid Transit line in New York City)

Inwood is served by the following express bus lines:

BxM1 from Riverdale to East Midtown

Issues:

Due to traffic congestion and the pay-as-you-board system, the buses are often slow. The Select Bus Service promises to improve speeds through pre-payment, dedicated bus lines, and right-of-way priority at traffic signals, but currently this would affect only the Bx12 line. Unfortunately, a bus lane enforcement bill was recently killed by the NYS Assembly Transportation Committee.

Bicycling

Inwood presents several attractive bicycling options. The Hudson River Greenway, providing a waterfront off-street bicycle and walking path down the West Side of Manhattan, begins at Dyckman Street and ends at Battery Park. It is regularly used by Inwood residents who commute by bicycle to work in Midtown or Downtown. The Harlem River Greenway provides a waterfront off-street bicycle path running from Dyckman Street to 155th Street. In neighboring Washington Heights, cyclists may cross the George Washington Bridge to access excellent cycling opportunities along the New Jersey Palisades.

Issues

The on-street route via Dyckman Street connecting the Hudson and Harlem River Greenways is challenging for cyclists due to heavy traffic.
The entrance to the Hudson River Greenway near Dyckman Street is difficult to locate for new cyclists and requires cyclists to dismount and carry their bikes up a flight of stairs.
Cyclists coming off the Hudson River Greenway must descend a steep, poorly paved parking lot to reach Dyckman Street.
The vision for the Greenway is a continuous waterfront bicycle and walking path around the perimeter of Manhattan. Presently, the Greenway terminates on both sides at Dyckman Street and does not continue around Inwood's shoreline, so the vision remains unfulfilled.
Broadway is the most logical continuation to Inwood of the bicycle route running from Central Park and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. to St. Nicholas Avenue and 168th Street. However, the stretch of Broadway from 168th Street to 220th Street is challenging for cyclists due to heavy traffic and lack of a protected bicycle lane.
There is no bicycle access on the Henry Hudson, Broadway, or University Heights bridges (cyclists must dismount and walk their bikes on the Broadway and University Heights bridges), and the nearby George Washington Bridge closes the cycle path from midnight to 6 a.m.
There is no bicycle access to Inwood Hill Park, despite having cyclable back roads that are infrequently used by pedestrians.
The six-mile corridor running from 207th Street at Inwood Hill Park to Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx links several transit lines (A,B,D,1,2,4,5,6 trains and the Metro-North Harlem and Hudson lines) and three major parks (Inwood Hill Park, the Botanical Gardens and Zoo, and Pelham Bay Park). Unfortunately, many stretches along Fordham Road (particularly east of the Grand Concourse) are challenging for cyclists due to heavy traffic.
The weekend parties on the Greenway at 155th Street are excessively noisy and block access to the walking and bicycle path.

Pedestrianism/Quality of Life

Inwood is a small and completely walkable neighborhood, with several parks (Inwood Hill Park, Isham Park, and Fort Tryon Park immediately south of Dyckman Street). A greenmarket with locally grown produce operates year-round every Saturday morning and afternoon at Isham and Cooper Streets.

Issues: