Along 5th Ave. in Manhattan, a Dispute Over Where East and West Begin
Fifth Avenue, the glittering central spine of Manhattan, is the undisputed divider of the city’s famous street grid: east of Fifth is East, and west of Fifth is West. Been that way since 1838.
So when Scott M. Stringer, the borough president of Manhattan, was walking along Fifth Avenue by Central Park this week, he noticed something peculiar: every bus stop sign on the sidewalk seemed to be wrong.
A stop across the avenue from East 84th Street was identified as “5 Avenue & West 84 St.” Same for the stop at Fifth Avenue and “West” 72nd Street. The peculiar signage continued all along the length of the park.
Mr. Stringer, who deemed the signs misleading, sent a stern note on Tuesday to the city’s Transportation Department, demanding that the apparent errors be fixed.
It is unclear, however, whether the signs are in error at all.
Since these signs sit on the west side of Fifth Avenue, they are technically in the western zone of the street grid. So can West 84th Street exist on the west side of Fifth Avenue, even if the street itself begins on the other side of Central Park?
The answer, steeped in the arcane history of New York’s streetscape, is hazy, even among historians. But the dispute points to the prevailing mysteries of Manhattan’s street grid, which, despite celebrating its 200th birthday on Tuesday, can continue to flummox....
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So when Scott M. Stringer, the borough president of Manhattan, was walking along Fifth Avenue by Central Park this week, he noticed something peculiar: every bus stop sign on the sidewalk seemed to be wrong.
A stop across the avenue from East 84th Street was identified as “5 Avenue & West 84 St.” Same for the stop at Fifth Avenue and “West” 72nd Street. The peculiar signage continued all along the length of the park.
Mr. Stringer, who deemed the signs misleading, sent a stern note on Tuesday to the city’s Transportation Department, demanding that the apparent errors be fixed.
It is unclear, however, whether the signs are in error at all.
Since these signs sit on the west side of Fifth Avenue, they are technically in the western zone of the street grid. So can West 84th Street exist on the west side of Fifth Avenue, even if the street itself begins on the other side of Central Park?
The answer, steeped in the arcane history of New York’s streetscape, is hazy, even among historians. But the dispute points to the prevailing mysteries of Manhattan’s street grid, which, despite celebrating its 200th birthday on Tuesday, can continue to flummox....