Subvert the "squeeze" and bypass the "pinch" with a flyover... not a combover
The East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) project
We’ve previously written about the East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) Project, a long-term infrastructural improvement initiative destined to\ protect the Lower East Side and East Village from future storm surge and flooding, while also beautifying East River Park. Check out prior articles below:
They Bang Like Crazy (If you’re feeling the need for an 80s parody)
Having lived in Stuy Town before relocating to the LES, the areas linked to Phase 2, i.e., north of Stanton Street, are personally interesting to me — if not also professionally . I can fondly remember catching the NYC Ferry at Stuyvesant Cove to Wall Street . I also recall going for runs with my wife along the East River, heading south , and negotiating fellow runners, bikes , and the spray of water from cars whipping around a curve on the FDR by 14th Street — at a spot known as the pinch point.
The pinch point is the narrow, constrained segment of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway located near the Con Edison facility between East 13th Street and East 15th Street, where the greenway runs tightly alongside the FDR Drive . The space itself narrows to a width where the entirety of north and southbound pedestrian traffic must pass through one at a time . Adding to the discomfort? The presence of adjacent utility operations and things that seem like they might electrocute , crush , or drown you only heightens the sense of risk at this bottleneck.
But, good news: it might go away!
To address this long-standing condition, the City is proposing a new elevated, over-water segment of the Manhattan Greenway — aka the flyover bridge . The structure is intended to bypass the existing pinch point entirely by lifting the shared-use path above or alongside the East River and FDR Drive , creating a wider, more continuous connection between East River Park and Stuyvesant Cove Park . The greenway would tie into elevated parkland at the north end of East River Park and return to grade at the Captain Patrick J. Brown Walk .
One important note: The flyover bridge is not part of the ESCR project.
If approved, it would be built under a separate City capital contract , with its own budget , timeline , and approvals process . Of course, it would need to be carefully coordinated with ESCR construction , but it would also have to navigate adjacent infrastructure owned by Con Edison and work closely with the Department of Transportation .
Related documents estimate the project’s cost at approximately $163 million , funded largely through NYC Parks’ capital budget , with an anticipated start date in late 2027 or early 2028 .
Runners and bikers can look forward to passing through — without waiting or touching one another — sometime in 2030.
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