It carries vehicular traffic on Park Avenue from 40th to 46th Streets around Grand Central Terminal and the MetLife Building, then through the Helmsley Building. All three buildings lie across the north–south line of the avenue. The viaduct itself is composed of two sections: a steel viaduct with two roadways from 40th to 42nd Streets, as well as a pair of roadways between 42nd and 46th Streets. The section from 40th to 42nd Streets was designated a New York City landmark in 1980 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The street-level service roads of Park Avenue, which flank the viaduct between 40th and 42nd Streets, are called Pershing Square.
The Park Avenue Viaduct, also known as the Pershing Square Viaduct, is a roadway in Manhattan in New York City. It carries vehicular traffic on Park Avenue from 40th to 46th Streets around Grand Central Terminal and the MetLife Building, then through the Helmsley Building. All three buildings lie across the north–south line of the avenue. The viaduct itself is composed of two sections: a steel viaduct with two roadways from 40th to 42nd Streets, as well as a pair of roadways between 42nd and 46th Streets. The section from 40th to 42nd Streets was designated a New York City landmark in 1980 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The street-level service roads of Park Avenue, which flank the viaduct between 40th and 42nd Streets, are called Pershing Square.
Description
The viaduct is used by automobile traffic between 40th Street to the south and 46th Street to the north. It is composed of two sections: the steel viaduct between 40th and 42nd Streets, and the pair of roadways between 42nd and 46th Streets. Immediately to the south of 40th Street is the portal of the Park Avenue Tunnel, which carries northbound traffic from 33rd Street directly onto the viaduct. The posted weight limit for the viaduct is 15 short tons (13 long tons; 14 t), and commercial traffic is prohibited. Pedestrian and bicycle traffic is generally also prohibited,except during "Summer Streets", when Park Avenue is closed to vehicular traffic on selected summer weekends.
Route
Southern section
From the south, traffic from Park Avenue, 40th Street, or the Park Avenue Tunnel enters the steel viaduct. The viaduct rises to a T-intersection just north of 42nd Street, over the street-level entrance to Grand Central Terminal below.. This segment of the viaduct is 600 feet (180 m) long and consists of a granite approach ramp with stone balustrades, as well as three steel arches, which are separated by granite piers with foliate friezes. The central arch has been infilled to create a restaurant space. The arches were included because of "aesthetic considerations", but are actually cantilever beams, because true arches would have required excessively large abutments. The girders over each pier are each 136 feet (41 m) long by 12 feet (3.7 m) deep, weighing 73 short tons (65 long tons; 66 t) each. They were made in New Jersey and shipped from Delaware to New York, then pulled by 52 horses from the East River
The deck of the viaduct, above the steel arches, contains railings with plain and foliate panels, as well as lampposts atop each granite pier. The deck is 60 feet (18 m) wide. The arches of the Pershing Square Viaduct are based on the Pont Alexandre III in Paris,[15] and contain plaques with the words "Pershing Square" at their centers.
Northern section
At the T-intersection north of 42nd Street, the viaduct splits into two legs. A statue of Cornelius Vanderbilt, longtime owner of New York Central, is at the T-intersection. The legs of the viaduct surround the terminal building and the MetLife Building to the north before passing through a pair of portals under the Helmsley Building between 45th and 46th Streets. Northbound traffic uses the eastern leg, which runs above a private road called Depew Place, while southbound traffic uses the western leg, which runs above the eastern sidewalk of Vanderbilt Avenue. Both roadways pass above 45th Street without intersection. The roadways then take sharp S-curves into the Helmsley Building, where they descend into triple-story arches that exit onto 46th Street.
The western leg is 35 feet (11 m) wide; the eastern leg is 33 feet (10 m) wide between 42nd and 44th Streets, widening to 53 feet (16 m) north of 44th Street. The roadway above 42nd Street, which connects the two legs, is 40 feet (12 m) wide. The portion of the viaduct immediately surrounding the terminal's building has a masonry balustrade with an additional metal guardrail. There is a cast-iron eagle atop the balustrade where the western leg curves onto the connecting roadway above 42nd Street. A sidewalk, accessible from the Grand Hyatt hotel, runs along the section of the viaduct that is parallel to 42nd Street.
Pershing Square
The street-level service roads of Park Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets are called Pershing Square. The service roads between 41st and 42nd Streets are open only to bicycles and pedestrians. The square is named after General John J. Pershing. Consequently, the southern portion of the viaduct between 40th and 42nd Streets is also known as the Pershing Square Viaduct.
History
The New York Central Railroad built the Grand Central Depot in 1869 as the southern terminus of the Park Avenue main line. The depot was located along the axis of Fourth Avenue (later Park Avenue), splitting the avenue into two parts: a section south of 42nd Street and another north of 45th Street. The southern section of Park Avenue was a quiet road running through the upscale enclave of Murray Hill, while the northern section contained an open cut (later covered over), which carried the Park Avenue main line. Further, the northern end of the Park Avenue Tunnel rose to ground level between 40th and 42nd Streets, splitting 41st Street into two sections at Park Avenue. Depew Place ran along the eastern side of the depot, while Vanderbilt Avenue ran along the western side
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