Having better bike lane access from NJ to Brooklyn, via the VNB, would no doubt benefit bicycling in Newark. This from an insightful Streetsblog comment by StevenF:
The Verrazano Narrows Bridge has never been finished: the bridge was designed for two bicycle/pedestrian paths. But Robert Moses took the paths out in last year of construction, 1963, because he was worried about the negative impact of suicides on his TBTA bond ratings. Moses thought that removing the paths would prevent suicides. So instead of people quietly walking up, thinking about it, and walking down, they drive up, during rush hour, dump the car, block traffic, and then jump. One poor guy got up there in a taxi.
Having no path didn’t stop suicides, it just stops cyclists, joggers, walkers and tourists from enjoying the world class view of New York harbor. It stops the 10 percent of VNB traffic that travels only 8 miles door to door from the option of traveling by bicycle. The VNB is less than 2 miles long, 10,000 feet street to street, and is a 10-15 bike ride. The 8 mile trip is 30-50 minutes – well within current driving times when the SI Expressway is backed up.
The path can be installed in the empty space waiting for it – the space under the cables outboard of the roadway, and won’t take any of the 12 roadway lanes away. Costs, documented by a City Planning engineering study, would be about $35 million for the two paths, complete.
For a quick and dirty and cheap path, install a steel Jersey Barrier to block off one lower level lane and create a two way bike/ped path. A couple million dollars and we can be riding the VNB.
NJ need better access to brooklyn, its so close, i dunno why it must seem so far....quite annoying
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