The Henry Hudson Parkway is a 10.95-mile (17.62 km) controlled-accessparkway in New York City. The southern terminus is in Manhattan at 72nd Street, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway.[3] It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout its entire course in Manhattan. The northern terminus is at the Bronx–Westchester county boundary, where it continues north as the Saw Mill River Parkway. All but the northernmost mile of the road is co-signed as New York State Route 9A (NY 9A). In addition, the entirety of the parkway is designated New York State Route 907V (NY 907V), an unsigned reference route.[3]
Henry Hudson Parkway near West 153rd Street, with the George Washington Bridge in the backgroundThe Henry Hudson Parkway in Riverdale
The Henry Hudson Parkway begins at 72nd Street, which also serves as the north end of the West Side Highway and the last remaining section of the West Side Highway's predecessor, the Miller Highway.[3] The junction is numbered as exit 9, continuing the numbering scheme used on the West Side Highway. It heads northward along the west side of Manhattan, connecting to West 79th Street with a large interchange and to other surface streets with more intermittent exits along the way. The parkway continues in a northerly direction, running almost parallel to Riverside Drive north of West 158th Street. It passes under the Trans-Manhattan Expressway (I-95 and U.S. 1) and the George Washington Bridge as it continues its progression through Fort Washington Park, Fort Tryon Park, and Inwood Hill Park. It then runs northward across the Henry Hudson Bridge into the Bronx.
Upon entering the Bronx, the parkway passes through Spuyten Duyvil and Riverdale as it continues northward, edging slightly to the northeast. Between exits 20 and 22, Riverdale Avenue is split into service roads along the parkway. At exit 23, NY 9A leaves the parkway for U.S. Route 9 (US 9) while the parkway enters Van Cortlandt Park. Soon after it enters the park, the parkway has an interchange with the Mosholu Parkway, which connects it to I-87. Less than a mile farther on, the parkway becomes the Saw Mill River Parkway as it enters Westchester County.
History
20th century
View northward in Riverdale, 1934Approaching the Henry Hudson Parkway from the West Side Highway, near 57th Street
In March 1934, the New York State Legislature approved the Henry Hudson Parkway.[4] Work on the parkway began in February 1935;[5] the project was funded by a $3.1 million bond issue.[6] The portion of the parkway north of Dyckman Street opened on December 12, 1936,[7] and the portion south of the George Washington Bridge opened on October 10, 1937.[8] The section of Riverside Drive between the George Washington Bridge and Dyckman Street was incorporated into the northbound roadway of Henry Hudson Parkway.[9] A parallel southbound roadway for the Henry Hudson Parkway was built between these two points;[10] it opened in January 1938.[11]
In the late 1940s, new breakdown lanes were constructed in order to improve safety. However, these were not constructed throughout the entire highway.[2] In 1965, Moses proposed constructing a two-lane reversible roadway along the Henry Hudson Parkway between 59th Street and the George Washington Bridge for $160 million. Had the roadway been built, there would have been no intermediate exits.[12]
As part of a $2.5 billion statewide bond issue in 1971, there was also a proposal to widen the Henry Hudson Parkway south of the George Washington Bridge to an eight-lane expressway in 1971. Local politicians opposed the proposal because it would require seizing parts of Riverside Park.[13] The widening was canceled after state legislators introduced an amendment to prevent the seizure of any parkland.[14]
On May 12, 2005, part of a retaining wall at Castle Village collapsed onto the northbound lanes of the parkway, just north of the George Washington Bridge, shutting it down shortly before rush hour. The clean-up began quickly, and the road re-opened on May 15.[15] The Henry Hudson Parkway is a candidate for designation as a New York State Scenic Byway, the first in New York City. At the request of the Henry Hudson Parkway Task Force, in 2005 the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council approved funding to develop a comprehensive corridor management plan, a requirement for its designation.[2]
_towards_the_George_Washington_Bridge_from_Riverside_Drive_near_West_153rd_Street_in_Manhattan,_New_York_City,_New_York.jpg)
_between_West_232nd_Street_and_West_235th_Street_in_the_Bronx,_New_York_City,_New_York.jpg)
