Park Row Bike And Pedestrian Paths Reopens After 9/11 Closure

CHINATOWN, NY — A half-mile stretch of Park Row connecting Chinatown to the Financial District has reopened for cyclists and pedestrians after shuttering nearly 18 years ago due to 9/11.

On Friday, the city officially reopened the Park Row two-way bike lane and pedestrian path spanning from Worth to Frankfort streets, which runs by the NYPD's headquarters, the U.S. Attorney's office and the Metropolitan Detention Center. Public access to the stretch of Park Row was barred after 9/11, but the city has slowly restored access to the roadway that serves as a vital connector for Lower Manhattan's neighborhoods.

"This is about how life must go on and we can not let terror defeat us," said Wellington Chen, the executivedirector of the Chinatown Partnership, at Friday's opening ceremony.

Work to restore Park Row from Worth to Frankfort streets began last fall and is the result of fierce advocacy by locals and elected officials.

"Today marks the culmination of a longstanding community-wide effort to bring back Park Row, a critical transportation artery connecting Chinatown to the rest of Lower Manhattan, for public use," said Councilwoman Margaret Chin.

As part of the project, the Department of Transportation resurfaced a section of the roadway and the NYPD relocated protective barriers along the corridor to increase access while maintaining security for One Police Plaza, the NYPD's headquarters. The transportation department also installed new signage and brighter, more energy-efficient LED lighting along the paths.

Vehicular safety is still a concern for the NYPD, which continues to monitor the roadway closely, but police felt comfortable reopening the roadway to cyclists and pedestrians, said a counterterrorism official.

“Right now we’re very concerned with vehicles, but when it comes to pedestrians and bicyclists we feel that this was a happy medium," said Inspector Jeff Schiff, executive officer for the NYPD's Counterterrorism Division.

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