NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Harbor Ring Committee today announced the completion and publication of the official Harbor Ring map covering a nearly 50-mile pedestrian and cycling route around New York Harbor. The route extends through Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Bayonne, Jersey City, and Hoboken. The map can be downloaded on the Committee’s website, www.harborring.org. The map will also soon be available at bike stores and tourist offices around the region.
At the same time, the Harbor Ring Committee is calling on the MTA to follow through with their pledge to study a bicycle and pedestrian pathway on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, the missing link in the Harbor Ring route. James Ferrara, President of MTA Bridges and Tunnels, wrote to the Harbor Ring Committee in March 2013: “We are considering the inclusion of a bicycle path feasibility study in the design phase of a planned Belt Parkway ramp reconstruction project.”
New York State Senator Diane Savino, whose district covers Brooklyn and Staten Island neighborhoods on both sides of the Verrazano Bridge, is a supporter of the Harbor Ring project, specifically the Verrazano pathway. Senator Savino has joined the Committee in asking the MTA to begin the planning for the pathway soon. According to Senator Savino: “Now is the time to incorporate a multi-use path on the Verrazano, so that construction can begin along with planned roadway improvements. Staten Islanders and Brooklynites deserve a toll-free option over the Verrazano Bridge for the good of the local economy, emergency access, and public health.”
Along with Senator Savino, many organizations and public figures have endorsed the Verrazano Bridge pathway, including the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, the East Coast Greenway Alliance, the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Senator Marty Golden, and Councilmembers Deborah Rose and Vincent Gentile.
The detailed Harbor Ring map will increase the Committee’s engagement with residents and community groups in neighborhoods along the bi-state route. Harbor Ring Committee Chair Paul Gertner said: “We look forward to hearing feedback about the route from as many communities as possible and we will be hosting local public workshops in the future for that purpose.”
The Harbor Ring Committee is a partnership of organizations and individuals working collaboratively to promote bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure encircling the entire New York Harbor, including a pathway across the Verrazano Bridge. A 1997 study determined that such a pathway is feasible without removing any vehicular traffic lanes and can be easily adapted to the existing bridge structure. The Committee works with the Regional Plan Association, which provides staff support. Law firm DLA Piper provides pro bono support to the project, with David Wenger serving as a member of the Committee.
