The entrance to the Liberty St. bridge moved two blocks south last week, tacking an extra few minutes onto many people’s commutes.
“It’s annoying,” said a 25 year old commuter, as she navigated the new route to the eastern side of the bridge last Thursday. “I am not happy about it.”
She said her commute from the Upper East Side to the World Financial Center was already long enough, without having to go an extra four blocks just to cross West St.
“Having to walk the extra [distance] in the winter is going to be brutal,” she said.
The Port Authority closed the old Liberty St. bridge entrance at Greenwich and Liberty Sts. just after midnight April 22. Part of the old bridge will be demolished to make way for the vehicle security center at the World Trade Center site.
The new bridge entrance, on West St. near Albany St., opened last Wednesday night and connects to the West St. overpass that leads into One World Financial Center.
On Thursday morning, many commuters walked down Liberty St. to the old entrance, and finding it closed, they followed the Port Authority’s signs down to Albany St., wrapping around the former Deutsche Bank building and entering the stairs and elevator to the new bridge in front of 90 West St. along the highway.
The old bridge entrance was dark and funneled pedestrians into a chute made of wood and metal, but the new entrance is bright and airy, with all the beams painted white.
“You like it?” a construction worker asked with pride as a reporter took pictures.
Asked what he thought of the bridge, the worker grinned.
“It’s operating, it’s open, no complaints, so I guess it’s good,” he said.
While the new bridge entrance means a longer commute for some, it got positive reviews from others, particularly those who now have a shorter walk to the bridge entrance.
“It’s great — very convenient,” said Sarah Spencer, a nanny who was taking two young children from their home on Rector St. in the Financial District to P.S. 89 in Battery Park City. “And it’s cleaner.”
The new bridge has also meant changes for the Tribute WTC Visitor Center, which is located on Liberty St. just east of the old bridge entrance.
“It’s been a bit of a challenge since the detour,” noted staff member Wendy Aibel-Weiss. The museum had to change both its walking and audio tours. The latter required the reproduction of maps and scripts in six different languages with the new information. The museum is making the most of the change, however, by incorporating material about buildings along the new route, such as 90 West St., a landmark Cass Gilbert building and O’Hara’s, a pub on the corner of Cedar and Greenwich Sts. “We’ve added stories about the role of O’Hara’s bar in the recovery effort from an oral history [that we did] with the members of their staff,” Aibel-Weiss explained.
Extra traffic agents and pedestrian managers were posted along the new route, but the commuters Thursday morning did not appear to need much help. A traffic agent at Albany and West Sts. said he saw many more people crossing at grade than usual, especially if they had a walk signal when they arrived at the intersection. If they weren’t able to cross immediately, most opted for the new bridge instead.
“Now they have a choice,” the agent said.
— Julie Shapiro and Kristin Shiller
