The Harlem River Drive is a 4.20-mile (6.76 km) long north–south
limited-access parkway
A parkway is a landscaped thoroughfare.''"parkway."''Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. Merriam-Webster, 2002. http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com (14 Apr. 2007). The term is particularly used for a roadway in a park or ...
in the
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
borough of
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. It runs along the west bank of the
Harlem River
The Harlem River is an tidal strait in New York, United States, flowing between the Hudson River and the East River and separating the island of Manhattan from the Bronx on the New York mainland.
The northern stretch, also called the Spuyt ...
from the
Triborough Bridge in
East Harlem
East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem or and historically known as Italian Harlem, is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City, roughly encompassing the area north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, ...
to
10th Avenue in
Inwood, where the parkway ends and the road continues northwest as
Dyckman Street. South of the Triborough Bridge, the parkway continues toward
lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...
as the
FDR Drive
The Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive, commonly called the FDR Drive for short, is a limited-access parkway on the east side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It starts near South and Broad Streets, just north of the Battery Par ...
. All of the Harlem River Drive is designated New York State Route 907P (NY 907P), an unsigned
reference route.
The parkway north of 165th Street was originally part of the Harlem River Speedway, a
horse carriage
A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping ...
roadway opened in 1898. The rest of the parkway from 125th to 165th Street opened to traffic in stages from 1951 to 1962. The parkway's ceremonial designation, 369th Harlem Hellfighters Drive, is in honor of the
369th Infantry Regiment
The 369th Infantry Regiment, originally formed as the 15th New York National Guard Regiment before being re-organized as the 369th upon federalization and commonly referred to as the Harlem Hellfighters, was an infantry regiment of the Ne ...
, also known as the Harlem Hellfighters.
Route description
The Harlem River Drive begins at exit 17 of the
FDR Drive
The Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive, commonly called the FDR Drive for short, is a limited-access parkway on the east side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It starts near South and Broad Streets, just north of the Battery Par ...
in the
East Harlem
East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem or and historically known as Italian Harlem, is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City, roughly encompassing the area north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, ...
section of
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. The parkway crosses under
125th Street alongside the
Harlem River
The Harlem River is an tidal strait in New York, United States, flowing between the Hudson River and the East River and separating the island of Manhattan from the Bronx on the New York mainland.
The northern stretch, also called the Spuyt ...
. Bending to the northwest, the Harlem River Drive crosses under Willis Avenue, passing west of the
Willis Avenue Bridge. Exit 19 leads off the southbound lanes to 125th Street and the Willis Avenue Bridge. The Harlem River Drive proceeds northwest, crosses under the
Third Avenue Bridge, reaching exit 21 northbound, a junction for
135th Street. Southbound, exit 20 connects to
Park Avenue
Park Avenue is a wide New York City boulevard which carries north and southbound traffic in the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Av ...
. Continuing northward, the Harlem River Drive continues north under the
Madison Avenue Bridge
__notoc__
The Madison Avenue Bridge is a four-lane swing bridge crossing the Harlem River in New York City, connecting Madison Avenue in Manhattan with East 138th Street in the Bronx. It was designed by Alfred P. Boller and built in 1910, doubl ...
. Southbound, the Harlem River Drive meets exit 22, a junction to 142nd Street and
Fifth Avenue
Fifth Avenue is a major and prominent thoroughfare in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It stretches north from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village to West 143rd Street in Harlem. It is one of the most expensive shopping ...
.
Crossing under
145th Street, the Harlem River Drive passes east of the
145th Street subway station on the
IRT Lenox Avenue Line (). It then passes directly east of the Lenox Yard and the
Harlem – 148th Street station. The Harlem River Drive crosses under the
Macombs Dam Bridge,
155th Street, and
Seventh Avenue before crossing northbound exit 23, a left exit to
Frederick Douglass Boulevard. Then, the parkway goes east of the
Polo Grounds
The Polo Grounds was the name of three stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used mainly for professional baseball and American football from 1880 through 1963. The original Polo Grounds, opened in 1876 and demolished in 1889, was built fo ...
site and merges with the southbound exit 23, an exit to Frederick Douglass Boulevard and to a junction with the Harlem River Driveway, which goes south to 155th Street. Shortly after, Harlem River Drive enters exit 24, a four-lane viaduct that rises from the parkway to connect to the
George Washington Bridge
The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United S ...
via
I-95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...
and
US 1 along the
Trans-Manhattan Expressway
Interstate 95 (I-95) is part of the Interstate Highway System and runs from Miami, Florida, to the Canada–United States border near Houlton, Maine. In the U.S. state of New York, I-95 extends from the George Washington Bridge in New Yor ...
, as well to
Amsterdam Avenue in
Washington Heights.
The Harlem River Drive continues northeast as a four-lane parkway. Crossing under the
Alexander Hamilton Bridge
The Alexander Hamilton Bridge is an eight-lane steel arch bridge that carries traffic over the Harlem River between the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx in New York City. It connects the Trans-Manhattan Expressway in the Washington Heights ...
, the Harlem River Drive crosses through
High Bridge Park before turning away from the Harlem River in
Inwood. The four-lane arterial continues north through Manhattan, entering a junction with
Dyckman Street and
Tenth Avenue, which is the northern end of the Harlem River Drive.
History
The Drive originated as the Harlem River Speedway,
which started construction in 1894 and opened in July 1898. Originally, the Speedway was exclusively for the use of horse-drawn carriages and those on horseback; bicyclists were specifically excluded, as were
sulkies
A sulky is a lightweight cart with two wheels and a seat for the driver, generally pulled by horses or dogs. With horses, a sulky is used for harness racing. The term is also used for an arch-mounted cart on wheels or crawler tracks, used i ...
and
drays. The Speedway ran from
West 155th Street to
Dyckman Street, and soon became a tourist destination, where visitors watched carriage races and boat races on the river. Rich New Yorkers used the Speedway to train their horses and size up those of their friends and competitors.
In 1919, motorists were allowed on the Speedway, but for normal driving purposes.
The route was paved in 1922, and officially renamed the Harlem River Driveway.
In 1939, Manhattan Borough President
Stanley M. Isaacs unveiled plans to build Harlem River Drive,
which was planned as a four-lane road linking the Harlem River Speedway and the
East River (now FDR) Drive north of
East 125th Street.
The initial section of the drive would stretch from 125th to 165th Streets, near where it merged into the speedway.
Traffic from the
Triborough Bridge and the several Harlem River bridges joining the
Major Deegan Expressway
Interstate 87 (I-87) is a north–south Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of New York. It is most of the main highway between New York City and Montreal. The highway begins at exit 47 off I-278 in the New York ...
in
the Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...
would feed into the drive.
Harlem River Drive would also contain playgrounds and parks along its route, similar to those on the East River Drive,
There would be a
service road
A frontage road (also known as an access road, outer road, service road, feeder road, or parallel road) is a local road running parallel to a higher-speed, limited-access road. A frontage road is often used to provide access to private drivew ...
abutting the drive's west side.
Sections of the old speedway in the path of the highway would incorporated into the new highway.
There would also be new ramps from the speedway section to the then-newly built
George Washington Bridge
The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United S ...
.
The cost of the Harlem River Drive was originally estimated at over $18 million, of which $11 million was used to build the highway itself and nearly $7 million in acquired lands.
However, there were some disagreements during the planning of the new highway, and by 1946, the cost had increased to $26 million.
The modern Harlem River Drive was completed in segments during the 1950s and early 1960s.
The segment connecting the Speedway to
Eighth Avenue, which ended at 159th Street, was completed in 1951. The highway from 125th Street and First Avenue to 132nd Street and Park Avenue opened in 1958, connecting three of the Harlem River bridges. Another section between 142nd and 161st Streets opened in 1960, and an extension south to 132nd Street opened two years later, closing the gap between the two sections. In 1964, shortly after the drive's completion, the entire drive was widened to six lanes.
In 2003, the
New York State Department of Transportation
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is the department of the Government of New York (state), New York state government responsible for the development and operation of highways, Rail transport, railroads, mass transit systems ...
ceremonially designated the parkway as the "369th Harlem Hellfighters Drive" in honor of
the all-black regiment that fought to defend
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
.
Founded in 2010, the
Manhattan Waterfront Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a waterfront greenway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan, in New York City. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separ ...
runs between the river and the drive, from 155th to Dyckman Streets, in a portion of
Highbridge Park which had been abandoned and fenced off approximately half a century.
Exit list
See also
*
Eddie Palmieri's recording and band "Harlem River Drive"
References
External links
NYCRoads.com – Harlem River DriveHow Harlem River Speedway Became Harlem River Drivefrom th
Museum of the City of New York Collections blog
{{Authority control
Parkways in New York City
Robert Moses projects
Harlem River
Transportation in Manhattan