West Side Highway
Encyclopedia
New York State Route 9A
New York State Route 9A is a state highway in the vicinity of New York City, New York, United States. Its southern terminus is at the northern end of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel in New York City, where it intersects with both Interstate 478 and FDR Drive. The northern terminus of...
(NY 9A) that runs from West 72nd Street
72nd Street (Manhattan)
72nd Street is one of the major bi-directional crosstown streets in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Where the west end of 72nd Street curves into the south end of Riverside Drive, the memorial to Eleanor Roosevelt stands in Riverside Park. At this end of the street is the landmarked...
along the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
to the southern tip of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. It replaced the West Side Elevated Highway
West Side Elevated Highway
The West Side Elevated Highway was an elevated section of Route NY-9A running along the Hudson River in the New York City borough of Manhattan to the tip of the island.It was an elevated highway, one of the first urban freeways in the world, and served as a...
, built between 1929 and 1951, which was shut down in 1973 due to neglect and lack of maintenance, and was dismantled by 1989. The term "West Side Highway" is often mistakenly used, particularly by the news media traffic reporters, to include the roadway north of 72nd Street which is properly known as the Henry Hudson Parkway
Henry Hudson Parkway
The Henry Hudson Parkway is an long parkway in New York City. The southern terminus is at West 72nd Street in Manhattan, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway. It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout its entire course in Manhattan...
.
The current highway, which was completed in 2001, but required some reconstruction due to damage sustained in the 9/11 attacks, utilizes the surface streets that existed before the elevated highway was built: West Street, Eleventh Avenue
Eleventh Avenue (Manhattan)
Eleventh Avenue is a north-south thoroughfare on the far West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, not far from the Hudson River. It carries downtown traffic only, south of West 44th Street, and two-way traffic north of it....
and Twelfth Avenue. A short section of Twelfth Avenue still runs between 129th and 138th Streets, under the Riverside Drive Viaduct
Riverside Drive Viaduct
The Riverside Drive Viaduct, built in 1900 by the US City of New York, was constructed to connect an important system of drives in Upper Manhattan by creating a high-level boulevard extension of Riverside Drive over the barrier of Manhattan Valley to the former Boulevard Lafayette in Washington...
.
Route description
59th Street (Manhattan)
59th Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan runs east-west, from York Avenue to the West Side Highway, with a discontinuity between Ninth Avenue/Columbus Avenue and Eighth Avenue/Central Park West for the Time Warner Center. Although it is bi-directional for most of its length, the...
to 72nd Street
72nd Street (Manhattan)
72nd Street is one of the major bi-directional crosstown streets in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Where the west end of 72nd Street curves into the south end of Riverside Drive, the memorial to Eleanor Roosevelt stands in Riverside Park. At this end of the street is the landmarked...
(where it becomes the Henry Hudson Parkway
Henry Hudson Parkway
The Henry Hudson Parkway is an long parkway in New York City. The southern terminus is at West 72nd Street in Manhattan, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway. It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout its entire course in Manhattan...
), elevated above a former rail yard adjacent to tracks still used by Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
. Trucks and buses are allowed only on the surface section.
Despite being a surface road, with many at-grade intersections and traffic lights, some of the intersections are given exit number
Exit number
An exit number is a number assigned to a road junction, usually an exit from a freeway. It is usually marked on the same sign as the destinations of the exit, as well as a sign in the gore....
s:
- Exit 1 - FDR Drive north
- Exit 2 - I-478 / Brooklyn-Battery TunnelBrooklyn-Battery TunnelInterstate 478s entire length consists of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel and its approaches. Its south end is at Interstate 278, and its north end is at NY 9A ....
to I-278 - Brooklyn, New York - Exit 3 - Canal StreetCanal Street (Manhattan)Canal Street is a major street in New York City, crossing lower Manhattan to join New Jersey in the west to Brooklyn in the east . It forms the main spine of Chinatown, and separates it from Little Italy...
to I-78 / Holland TunnelHolland TunnelThe Holland Tunnel is a highway tunnel under the Hudson River connecting the island of Manhattan in New York City with Jersey City, New Jersey at Interstate 78 on the mainland. Unusual for an American public works project, it is not named for a government official, politician, or local hero or... - Exit 4 - 10th Avenue
- Exit 5 - West 30th Street to NY 495 / Lincoln TunnelLincoln TunnelThe Lincoln Tunnel is a long tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey and the borough of Manhattan in New York City.-History:...
for Cars - Exit 6 - West 40th Street (northbound) West 42nd Street42nd Street (Manhattan)42nd Street is a major crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, known for its theaters, especially near the intersection with Broadway at Times Square. It is also the name of the region of the theater district near that intersection...
(southbound) to NY 495 / Lincoln TunnelLincoln TunnelThe Lincoln Tunnel is a long tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey and the borough of Manhattan in New York City.-History:...
for Trucks and Buses - Exit 7 - West 56th Street, West 57th Street57th Street (Manhattan)57th Street is one of New York City's major east-west thoroughfares, which runs east-west in the Midtown section of the borough of Manhattan, from the New York City Department of Sanitation's dock on the Hudson River at the West Side Highway to a small park overlooking the East River built on a...
(northbound) - Exit 8 - West 59th Street59th Street (Manhattan)59th Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan runs east-west, from York Avenue to the West Side Highway, with a discontinuity between Ninth Avenue/Columbus Avenue and Eighth Avenue/Central Park West for the Time Warner Center. Although it is bi-directional for most of its length, the...
, Ship Terminal (northbound)
On April 25, 1999, the highway was named after Joe DiMaggio
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul "Joe" DiMaggio , nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper," was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak , a record that still stands...
; ceremonial signs were placed. This was in the midst of a reconstruction, finished on March 29, 2002, after the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
destroyed part of the road, which was still being rebuilt. There was debate over whether to rebuild this section on the surface or with a tunnel for through traffic. However, Governor of New York
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
George Pataki
George Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
and a panel agreed to turn that stretch into a boulevard
Boulevard
A Boulevard is type of road, usually a wide, multi-lane arterial thoroughfare, divided with a median down the centre, and roadways along each side designed as slow travel and parking lanes and for bicycle and pedestrian usage, often with an above-average quality of landscaping and scenery...
.
Death Avenue
Before the West Side Highway was built, the road along the Hudson RiverHudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
was a busy one, with cross traffic going to dock
Dock (maritime)
A dock is a human-made structure or group of structures involved in the handling of boats or ships, usually on or close to a shore.However, the exact meaning varies among different variants of the English language...
s and ferries. At 22nd Street, most traffic continued north along 11th Avenue, along which the New York Central Railroad
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
's West Side Line ran; it was known by many as Death Avenue for the large number of accidents caused by trains and automobiles colliding.
Miller's Elevated West Side Highway
Various proposals circulated in the 1920s to build an expressway on the west side. Among the proposals:- Rail/Highway Double Decker - The New York Central RailroadNew York Central RailroadThe New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
proposed building a highway/rail double decked highway from 72nd Street to Canal Street, which would be constructed privately at no cost to the city. It would eliminate 106 grade crossings over 84 blocks. It ran into opposition because of fears that it would create a rail monopoly. - Hencken's Ten-story Train/Car/Office/People Mover - Engineer John Hencken proposed an exotic ten-story complex with a rail line underground, a road at street level, a people mover built above that, topped by ten stories of apartments and offices. A similar alternative was offered by Benjamin Battin.
Manhattan Borough president
Borough president
Borough President is an elective office in each of the five boroughs of New York City.-Reasons for establishment:...
Julius Miller
Julius Miller
Julius Miller was a Manhattan Borough President from 1922 to 1930, who is best remembered for pushing through the West Side Elevated Highway from 72nd Street to the tip of Manhattan....
said that something had to be done right away and ultimately pushed through the plan for the West Side Elevated Highway
West Side Elevated Highway
The West Side Elevated Highway was an elevated section of Route NY-9A running along the Hudson River in the New York City borough of Manhattan to the tip of the island.It was an elevated highway, one of the first urban freeways in the world, and served as a...
, which was to eventually bear his name.
The proposal immediately ran into stiff opposition. The City Club and New York City Mayor James J. Walker objected to the highway on the grounds that it would block waterfront-bound freight traffic. They believed that the plans should wait until the surface railroad tracks were removed in the area, at which point the elevated highway might not be necessary. Many objected that it would be ugly.
Construction started in 1929 and the section between Canal Street and West 72nd Street was completed in 1937 with a "Southern Extension" to the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel
Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel
Interstate 478s entire length consists of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel and its approaches. Its south end is at Interstate 278, and its north end is at NY 9A ....
completed in 1951.
Robert Moses proposals
The elevated road began before Robert MosesRobert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
came on the scene.
However, Moses built massive projects extending from the north and south ends of the West Side Highway.
- Henry Hudson ParkwayHenry Hudson ParkwayThe Henry Hudson Parkway is an long parkway in New York City. The southern terminus is at West 72nd Street in Manhattan, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway. It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout its entire course in Manhattan...
- The West Side Highway becomes the Henry Hudson Parkway just north of 72nd Street thanks to efforts by Moses called the "West Side Improvement." The parkway does not permit trucks. The parkway is partially an elevated highway over the rail tracks (now used by AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
). - Brooklyn-Battery TunnelBrooklyn-Battery TunnelInterstate 478s entire length consists of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel and its approaches. Its south end is at Interstate 278, and its north end is at NY 9A ....
- The highway hooks into the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel at its southern end. Moses had proposed to create the "Brooklyn-Battery Crossing Bridge" but federal intervention obliged Moses to use a tunnel instead. - Battery Park UnderpassBattery Park UnderpassThe Battery Park Underpass was the second section of Manhattan's Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive to be completed, opening to the public in April 1951...
connects to FDR Drive.
In the 1960s, Moses proposed straightening and widening the West Side Highway and constructing both the Lower Manhattan Expressway
Lower Manhattan Expressway
The Lower Manhattan Expressway was a controversial plan for an expressway through lower Manhattan originally conceived by Robert Moses in 1941, but delayed until the early 1960s...
and the Mid-Manhattan Expressway
Mid-Manhattan Expressway
The Mid-Manhattan Expressway was a planned but never built expressway that would have crossed Midtown Manhattan in the vicinity of 30th Street, connecting the Lincoln Tunnel between Manhattan and New Jersey to the Queens Midtown Tunnel between Manhattan and Long Island.- Initial proposals :Plans...
s, connecting routes that would have stretched across Manhattan. None of these projects were ever built. Later, in his 80s, he opposed the Westway project, but by that time his ideas weren't taken seriously. Rather than constructing a below-grade interstate highway, Moses proposed merely straightening and rebuilding the West Side Highway south of 59th Street. Between 59th and 72nd Streets, the site of the former Penn Central 60th Street rail yard, he proposed bringing the highway to grade and moving it eastward to allow for a waterfront park and some housing at the southeast corner of the rail yard. This was the nucleus of the idea that led to the plan for Riverside South
Trump Place
Riverside South is an apartment complex originated by Donald Trump and six civic partners on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, in New York City.The $3 billion project on a site between 59th Street and 72nd...
.
1973 collapse
On December 15, 1973, the northbound lanes between Little West 12th Street and Gansevoort Street collapsed under the weight of a dump truck
Dump truck
A dump truck is a truck used for transporting loose material for construction. A typical dump truck is equipped with a hydraulically operated open-box bed hinged at the rear, the front of which can be lifted up to allow the contents to be deposited on the ground behind the truck at the site of...
, which was carrying over 30 tons (27,000 kg) of asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
for ongoing repairs of the highway. A four-door sedan followed the truck through the hole; neither driver was seriously injured. The next day, both directions were 'indefinitely' closed south of 18th Street. Ironically, this not only closed off the oldest section (between Canal Street
Canal Street (Manhattan)
Canal Street is a major street in New York City, crossing lower Manhattan to join New Jersey in the west to Brooklyn in the east . It forms the main spine of Chinatown, and separates it from Little Italy...
and 18th Street), but also the newest sections (south of Canal Street), because of the placement of ramps to prevent northbound traffic from entering and southbound traffic from exiting south of Canal Street.
Westway
In 1971, the Urban Development Corporation (UDC) proposed bringing the highway up to Interstate standardsInterstate Highway standards
Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in the publication A Policy on Design Standards - Interstate System...
and making it Interstate 478. The UDC plan, the "Water Edge Study," called for the highway to be routed along the ends of the then mostly abandoned piers on the Hudson River and the addition of 700 acres (2.8 km²) of land for parks and apartments, all to be constructed on concrete platforms between the bulkhead and the pierhead lines. It was championed by New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
and Mayor John Lindsay
John Lindsay
John Vliet Lindsay was an American politician, lawyer and broadcaster who was a U.S. Congressman, Mayor of New York City, candidate for U.S...
. Renamed "Westway" in 1974, the final plan called for burying the highway in new landfill south of 40th Street, placing the accompanying development on land instead of on platforms.
Hugh Carey
Hugh Carey
Hugh Leo Carey was an American attorney, the 51st Governor of New York from 1975 to 1982, and a seven-term United States Representative .- Early life :...
who was to become governor, and Ed Koch
Ed Koch
Edward Irving "Ed" Koch is an American lawyer, politician, and political commentator. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 1969 to 1977 and three terms as mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989...
who was to become mayor, both campaigned against the plan saying it would be a waste of government funds and would be to windfall for private developers. After the two were elected, they both reversed their position and supported the plan.
In 1981, President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and the United States Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
were on board for the construction with a 1981 price tag of $2.1 billion.
In 1982, Judge Thomas Griesa of the U.S. District Court blocked the permit, saying the road would harm striped bass
Striped bass
The striped bass is the state fish of Maryland, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and the state saltwater fish of New York, Virginia, and New Hampshire...
. His order was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
On September 30, 1985, New York City officially gave up on the project allocating 60 percent of its interstate highway funds to mass transit and setting aside $811 million for the "West Side Highway Replacement Project."
West Side Highway Replacement Project
Construction of the West Side Highway Replacement Project was completed in August 2001. The period between the 1973 collapse and the 1985 demise of Westway was a chaotic time for drivers as the original elevated highway was dismantled (finally in 1989) and traffic was rerouted to temporary highways. The new highway permits trucks, which the old elevated did not. Together with the northern Henry Hudson ParkwayHenry Hudson Parkway
The Henry Hudson Parkway is an long parkway in New York City. The southern terminus is at West 72nd Street in Manhattan, where the parkway continues south as the West Side Highway. It is often erroneously referred to as the West Side Highway throughout its entire course in Manhattan...
, it creates a leafy boulevard along the Hudson River from the northern tip to the southern tip of Manhattan.
Donald Trump and Riverside South
During the period, debates raged about what to do with the section from West 72nd Street and 59th Street. Donald TrumpDonald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
, who had an option on the property, seized on Robert Moses'
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
proposal to relocate the highway to grade as a way to facilitate a 12,000-unit residential development. The State Department of Transportation, however, rejected his ideas and proposed instead to renovate the elevated section between 59th and 72nd Streets.
A subsequent development project, "Lincoln West", accepted the elevated highway, but that project failed to obtain financing. Later Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
proposed Television City
Trump Place
Riverside South is an apartment complex originated by Donald Trump and six civic partners on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, in New York City.The $3 billion project on a site between 59th Street and 72nd...
, a design based on a massive 13-block-long podium to hide the elevated highway. When a deal with NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
fell through, he revised his plans slightly and renamed the project Trump City.
Six civic organizations opposed to Trump City proposed a plan that would bury the highway in conjunction with a much smaller development. Trump eventually agreed to this plan, known as Riverside South
Trump Place
Riverside South is an apartment complex originated by Donald Trump and six civic partners on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, in New York City.The $3 billion project on a site between 59th Street and 72nd...
. After city approval in 1992, work began on the new apartment complex, although the debate still rages, even as Trump has sold his interest to the Carlyle Group
Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group is an American-based global asset management firm, specializing in private equity, based in Washington, D.C. The Carlyle Group operates in four business areas: corporate private equity, real assets, market strategies and fund-of-funds, through its AlpInvest subsidiary...
and Extell Development Company.
Burying this section has always been politically complicated because in the 1990s $70 million was spent to straighten, widen, and reinforce the elevated highway. Nevertheless, in June, 2006, the new developer began construction of a tunnel for the relocated highway between 61st and 65th streets.
Hudson River Park
Legislation in June 1998 followed an agreement by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Governor George PatakiGeorge Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
to create the Hudson River Park
Hudson River Park
Hudson River Park is a waterside park on the Hudson River that extends from 59th Street south to Battery Park in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Bicycle and pedestrian paths, including the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway, span the park north to south, opening up the waterfront for...
on the west side of the highway from West 72nd to the Battery. The park consists of 550 acres (2.2 km²) and is the biggest park construction in the city since Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
. A bicycle path
Bicycle Path
Bicycle Path is a historic road in Central Suffolk County on Long Island, New York, built in the late 19th Century in order to capitalize on the bicycle craze of that period...
running the length of the highway to Battery Park City was one of the first additions. Piers are currently being refurbished and the project is to be completed in 2008.
Joe DiMaggio Highway
Even though the highway has had two other official names, the official names have never stuck. The first official name was the Miller Highway, in honor of the city council president who pushed for the highway. On March 30, 1999, at the urging of Rudolph Giuliani, the highway was renamed for Yankee great Joe DiMaggioJoe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul "Joe" DiMaggio , nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper," was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak , a record that still stands...
, who had just died. Legislation to rename the highway had been introduced before DiMaggio died.
Others speculated Giuliani championed the name change because the highway would have been the approach to the proposed West Side Stadium
West Side Stadium
The West Side Stadium was a proposed football stadium to be built on a platform over the rail yards on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City....
at the highway and 32nd Street. DiMaggio lived on Manhattan's east side.
As of May 2006, there is only minimal signage for the new name while "West Side Highway" signs abound.
September 11
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
, played a major role in the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
and its aftermath. The famous flag raising photograph
Raising the Flag at Ground Zero
Raising the Flag at Ground Zero is a photograph by Thomas E. Franklin of The Record , taken on September 11, 2001. The picture shows three New York City firefighters raising the American flag at ground zero of the World Trade Center following the September 11 attacks. The official name for the...
by Thomas E. Franklin
Thomas E. Franklin
Thomas Ewan Franklin is an American photographer for The Bergen Record, best known for his photograph Raising the Flag at Ground Zero, which depicts firefighters raising the American flag at the World Trade Center after the September 11, 2001 attacks.-Biography:Franklin is a 1988 graduate of the...
of the Bergen Record took place by the highway on the northwest corner of the site. In addition, three chunks of the tower that crashed into the highway were used in iconic pictures of the day. Emergency personnel went down the West Side Highway and were greeted by cheering crowds at Christopher Street
Christopher Street (Manhattan)
Christopher Street is a street in the West Village neighborhood of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is the continuation of 9th St. to the west of its intersection with 6th Ave. The Stonewall Inn is located on Christopher Street, and, therefore, the street was at the center of New York's...
on their return. Virtually all the debris
Debris
Debris is rubble, wreckage, ruins, litter and discarded garbage/refuse/trash, scattered remains of something destroyed, or, in geology, large rock fragments left by a melting glacier etc. The singular form of debris is debris...
from the Center traveled up the West Side Highway to be shipped off by barge. For the last half of the month, out-of-town ambulances waited on the highway for a chance to help injured patients.
Art initiative
In an outdoor installation for the Armory Show, American artist Janet EchelmanJanet Echelman
Janet Echelman is an American artist specializing in public art installations and sculpture. She graduated from Harvard University in 1987 with Highest Honors in Visual Studies. From 1988-1993 Echelman lived and worked in Bali, Indonesia before returning to America. She created her first permanent...
affixed her sculpture Roadside Shrine II to the underside of West Side Highway's piers 90 and 88. The vinyl-coated polyethylene mesh cones were illuminated at night, fluttering in the wind as visitors flagged down taxis.
Reconstruction
As a master plan was developed for Ground Zero, plans initially called for the West Side Highway to be buried in a tunnel between the site and Battery Park City that was expected to cost $1 billion.Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
, which had planned to build its headquarters in Battery Park City, announced its intention to cancel those plans because of concerns about the traffic pattern and long-term construction disruptions. This prompted Gov. Pataki to cancel the project in favor of a boulevard approach.
In 2004, the police announced concerns that the proposed Freedom Tower
Freedom Tower
One World Trade Center , more simply known as 1 WTC and formerly known as the Freedom Tower, is the lead building of the new World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan in New York City...
would be too close to the West Side Highway and thus vulnerable to car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
s. This prompted a total redesign of the tower and the relocation of its site away from the highway.