Riding a bike in NYC - HELP

You definitely do NOT want to ride over the Manhattan Bridge - I don't believe there is a bike path. [IMG]/img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif[/IMG]

The Brooklyn Bridge has a bike path but if the weather is nice it's best to start early so as to avoid tourist/pedestrian congestion.

I don't know of a bike path through the city (i'm sure there are though), but there is a bike path along the West Side Highway, which goes all the way to the George Washington Bridge. Central Park starts at 59th Street so you should be able to cut across Manhattan at any appropriate street after that. Not sure of any specific bike path that goes all the way, but these days, much to the angst of pedestrians, motorists, and cylists alike, they are all over the place. Maybe the rental shop has a map or some recommendation? I don't find it a prob as depending on the circumstances sometimes I actually find it safer to ride w/traffic bike messenger style (with a good dose of politeness to any pedestrian traffic along the way).

Central Park will be VERY congested on a nice day, IMO unrideable on weekend afternoons. You may have a better ride going up the west side highway bike path, I'm not a professional travel guide though. If you are in Brooklyn, Prospect Park is also a lovely ride. A little short at 3.5 miles but if don't mind being a hamster on a wheel, 10 laps works out to 35 miles. I do that 4X a week. Good luck and enjoy the Big Apple!

Thanks ! I'll be riding on a Friday early afternoon.

Curiously, I saw this on YouTube. Is this the same bridge you're talking about? There seems to be a bike path!

No! That is the Manhattan Bridge, its spills onto Canal Street. I did not even know that this existed and btw it looks waaay less trafficked than the Brooklyn Bridge! That path looks exclusive to cyclists which would be awesome - the Brooklyn Bridge is a shared path with nothing but a thin yellow strip dividing cyclists and pedestrians and all to often the peds wander absent mindedly into the bike path for a photo op.

Needless to say thanks for sharing, I will be trying this route in the near future.

FYI, On the Manhattan side, the BB spills out closer to the west side, the MB closer to the east side. On the Brroklyn side the two bridges spill out pretty close to one another.

Edit: if u take the MB, 3rd Ave seems like the obvious choice to go uptown toward Central Park. There's probably marked bike paths, but check the internet for maps/bike maps.

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Originally Posted by Pistol Pete [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

I'm not familiar with NYC. Maybe someone here is. I'll be spending a long week-end in New-York city next week. I intend to rent a road bike. I'm thinking of riding it in central park. I found a good rental place in Brooklyn. Is it safe to ride a bike from Brooklyn to central park or am I crazy? Can I ride over the Manhattan bridge? Are there any bike lines in those areas and/or on the bridge? What's the best/safest route from Brooklyn to central park?

Thanks

Pete. It's pretty easy! Just use Hudson River Greenway to get from Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park.Though i would recommend to start in Central Park and than go to Brooklyn Bridge and back. Here is good rental place near Central Park : Central Park Bike Rental
Not sure how busy are they now, but in summer ALL nyc bike shops are very busy. So always reserve in advance.