Proposal for Central Park Arches - November 2014

Proposal for Central Park Cyclists and Pedestrian Safety Through Historic ImprovementsMatthew Falber, 917-346-9336, 450 Lexington Ave, #2223, New York, NY 10163

Update: (4-27-15) Note that this proposal was written in November of 2014 prior to the founding of Central Park Arch Project http://www.centralparkarchproject.org. The organization's intentions have changed slightly since this original proposal. While we are still committed to restoring Marble Arch at its original location and Outset Arch between Sheep Meadow and Tavern on the Green, we are still conducting a study to determine the best location for Oval Arch. Strawberry Fields, while problematic, is not as dangerous as other crossings. This original text is provided for reference.

- Central Park Arch Project

Dear Friends, Leaders, and Colleagues,

Like many of you, I was particularly upset to learn of the recent death of 75-year-old Irving

Schachter, and more recently 58-year-old Jill Tarlov. Both Schachter and Tarlov were killed after

being struck by a cyclist in Central Park. The incident has increased the discussions about bicycle

safety in New York. Judging by continued adoption of the bicycle as an environmentally friendly and

healthy mode of transportation, it is likely that more unfortunate events will occur unless we clarify

transportation infrastructure, making it safer for cyclists and pedestrians.

In a September 28th New York Times article, a government official speculated that Frederick Law

Olmsted and Calvert Vauxs original park plans may be to blame for the recent accidents as many of

the pedestrian crossings are located near some of the parks most popular features. Fortunately,

this is the not the case. Alterations to the park over the years have created these dangerous

crossings and I believe that we can resolve them by looking at the designers original intentions and

plans. The solution would benefit cyclists and pedestrians equally.

Original Efforts to Reduce InjuryCentral Park was planned in the 1850s when New Yorkers had few places to escape the bustle of

city living. The Commissioners' Plan of 1811, which created the street grid, left no greenspace for

the citys residents. The parks designers Olmsted and Vaux felt it was their duty to create an area

where New Yorkers could escape the chaos that existed outside of the parks walls. They won the

right to execute their plans for the now 843 acre park by winning a design competition which

stipulated that any plan entered must include four transverse roads that crossed through the park.


While other designers segmented the park leaving pedestrians to cross through what would become

a busy thoroughfare, Olmsted and Vauxs plan lowered the roads below the grade of the surface.

Our instructions call for four transverse roads... Inevitably they will be crowded thoroughfares, having

nothing in common with the park proper... They must be constantly open to all legitimate traffic of the

city... ladies and invalids will need special police escort for crossing them; as they do in lower

Broadway.

In the plan herewith offered to the Commission, each of the transverse roads is intended to be sunk

so far below the general surface that the park drive may, at necessary point of intersection, be carried

entirely over it, without any obvious elevation or divergence from their most attractive routes... a little

judicious planting on the tops or slopes of the banks above the walls will, in most cases, entirely

conceal both the roads and the vehicles moving in them, from the view of those walking or driving in

the park. - Frederick Law Olmsted

The selection committee was so impressed by this element of Olmsted and Vauxs Greensward

plan that they enthusiastically selected it over 32 other design entries. Upon the selection, they

instructed the designers to extend the concept to all of the parks pathways so that roads for

carriages, foot traffic, and horses could co-exist within Central Parks borders without ever crossing.

The request prompted the implementation of Calvert Vauxs beautiful archways and land bridges.

Today more than thirty of these structure make it easy and safe for pedestrians to cross the parks

fast-paced roads but not all of them remain and the city has changed significantly since it was build.

Problem Areas Created By Changes to The Park

The accident which fatally injured Jill Tarlov took place at a pedestrian crosswalk between Sheep

Meadow and Tavern on the Green, before we examine that crosswalk though, I think its important to

look at a very similar area located between The Central Park Mall (which leads to Bethesda Terrace)

and Wollman Rink (as well as The Dairy). All of the locations Ive mentioned are heavily visited.


The image above depicts the park as it was originally constructed. It clearly distinguishes paths that

are intended for carriages by use of the word DRIVE, walking paths using the word WALK, and bridle

paths using the word RIDE. The beige path that runs from the top of the image to the bottom, slightly

left of center is the 64th Street Transverse Road. As intended, it runs below the park. What exists

today was drastically altered under the supervision of former Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.

Two bridges and arches were removed from the area, and two features were added.

The lower left area bordered by the carriage path and the transverse road was swallowed by the

expansion of The Central Park Zoo. Along with it, Outset Arch, which separated the bridal path from

the carriage path, was demolished. As there is no way to enter the zoo by crossing the road at the

juncture, pedestrian traffic at the crossing is moderately light.

In the center of the map, near figure 12, Moses filled in another arch so he could straighten a road.

His intention was to improve vehicular traffic flow. Vauxs beautiful Marble Arch previously allowed

pedestrians to cross below the carriage trail safely. This path is always congested. Pedestrians,


carriages, vehicles, and bicycles regularly move through this thoroughfare with no regard for the

traffic light that crudely replaced the arch. There are various plans and photographs of this once

magnificent arch in existence and it is presumed that the elements still remain underground.

Marble Arch

Finally, it is worth mentioning, that the section of The Pond featured on the extreme left of the map

was converted into an ice rink by Moses in 1950. The Rink draws significantly more foot traffic than

it would have as a more naturalistic area.

Next I would like to examine the area where the collision ended Jill Tarlovs life.

The top of this map shows Central Park West intersecting with the city grid. The lower center


section is now Sheep Meadow and above it, the riding path is now Tavern on the Green.

Olmsted and Vauxs original design execution again varies significantly with what is presently in this

area. Sheep Meadow is so named because at one point it contained sheep. The bustling Tavern on

the Green, across the street, was originally intended to house those sheep. Again, Robert Moses

significantly changed the character of the area by removing the sheep and turning their home into a

restaurant. On a busy summer day, the meadow can attract 30,000 people to its enticing emerald

lawn. There was never intended to be foot traffic of this kind in the area. The crosswalk here is

similarly a dangerous and crowded area.

In this last map we see another section of the park thats character has changed significantly. The

teardrop shaped section is now Strawberry Fields. The area attracts a large number of tourists as

does the The Dakota building at 72nd St. The traffic loop pictured no longer exists as the section

closest to 73rd Street is closed to public vehicles. The area marked by the letter d is now a dangerous

and confusing crosswalk. Pedestrians can cross both north and south and east and west while

traffic zooms past them from all directions. Of all the sections weve examined, this is the closest we


could come to blaming Olmsted and Vauxs original plan. It was purposely separated from the rest of

the park and surrounded by a carriage path as it was intended to be the site of a restaurant that was

never build. It became a meadow for which an arch was never designed. At the time, it was a quiet

part of the park and The Dakota hadnt been built. However, revitalizing the area as Strawberry Fields

made it one of the most visited places in the park. Something should have been done to plan for the

additional foot-traffic and we shouldnt have created such a dangerous crosswalk.

Solution

The areas mentioned above are not only congested but on September 28th, The New York Times

found that cyclists moving through them are averaging about 30 miles per hour. Pedestrians have no

choice but to use these crowded crosswalks where cyclists, rollerbladers, and vehicles already have

a difficult time sharing the road. I believe that it would be advantageous to restore three arches

which were all removed by Robert Moses to these troubled areas. As I mentioned earlier, the

crossing by The Mall was once home to Marble Arch which could possibly be restored my excavation

and refurbishment. The other two areas could be fitted with arches that Moses removed from other

areas in the park.

Spur Rock Arch

Spur Rock Arch or Oval Arch originally went over a crossing near 61st street at what would be 7th Ave.

Moses demolished the bridge in order to expand Heckscher Ballfield. Drawings of the arch exist in

the Municipal Archives. The Central Park Conservancy has been able to use drawings such as these


in the past to restore park elements such as The Dairy and Oak Bridge. As, the bridges name came

from the outcropping of Manhattan Schist that it once sat in, its alternative name Oval Arch may be

more appropriate if it were to be reconstructed allowing safe passage to and from Strawberry Fields.

Outset Arch

As mentioned earlier, Outset Arch previously separated the carriage and horse trails in the southeast

section of Central Park but was demolished by Moses for the expansion of the zoo. Again, drawings

exist in the Municipal Archive. The arches flat nature would make it ideal for the crossing between

Sheep Meadow and Tavern On The Green which is not only host to a significant amount of traffic but

also the finish line for the New York City Marathon.

Recreating these arches would not only alleviate dangerous conditions in the park, it would do it in a

manner that is consistent with the vision of the original Greensward plan. It also uses actual design

elements from the original plan which were previously lost from the park.

Bicycle traffic in New York City has more than doubled since 2007 and CitiBike membership has

soared to over 120,000 members. Bicycle collisions went up more than 25% from 2012 to 2013

according to the citys data. The implementation of these plans would ensure that as bicycles

continue to be adopted, collisions in the park decrease rather than increase.

When Mayor De Blasio was elected he put together a team to enact Vision Zero, his goal to eliminate

traffic accidents in New York City. A plan like this does far more to help that vision than changing

speed limits or handing out tickets could ever do because it removes the need for pedestrians to


walk through potentially dangerous traffic.

Changes to our infrastructure like this are imperative as we continue to discover better ways for

cyclists and pedestrians to share the road. I invite your comments and support in helping me making

this proposal a reality and I thank you for you time.

Warm regards,

Matthew Falber

917-346-9336

450 Lexington Ave, #2223

New York, NY 10163

http://www.patchquilt.com

http://www.centralparksunsettours.com

Proposal for Central Park Arches - November 2014

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