The historic Carroll Street Bridge was built before cars dominated the streets of New York City, and when it reopens after a five-year closure on June 15, they won’t be welcome to cross its boards anymore.
Only pedestrians, cyclists and emergency vehicles will be able to make use of the 137-year-old bridge from now on, Department of Transportation commissioner Mike Flynn announced on Wednesday.
“Gowanus has been dramatically transformed in recent years as more and more New Yorkers call the neighborhood home,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn. “As the community becomes more residential, we are pleased that we could preserve this historic bridge while adapting our infrastructure to make it more welcoming to Brooklynites on two feet and two wheels. The newly renovated Carroll Street Bridge, with new restrictions barring truck and vehicular traffic, will help ensure that transition.”
The bridge, in its open position, in 1903. Photo courtesy of NYC Department of Records and Information Services
Some locals have been urging the city to keep cars off the bridge, hoping to “reclaim” and pedestrianize a portion of the rapidly-changing Gowanus waterfront. The push was backed by Council Member Shahana Hanif and Community Board 6.
Built in 1889, the wooden, retractile Carroll Street Bridge is one of only four of its kind in the entire U.S. It opens “like a drawer,” as described by DOT, to let maritime traffic pass through.
The bridge was shuttered in 2021 as the federal Environmental Protection Agency began driving piles into the ground to help support it during Superfund cleanup operations.
But officials quickly realized that the pile driving had damaged the bridge, which was already in need of significant repair. The bridge had been slated to reopen in March 2022, but that deadline was scrapped as officials worked to determine just how much work the structure would need. Since then, it has remained locked in its open position.
Significant repairs were made to the bridge’s abutments — supportive structures located at either end of the span — and its approach, according to DOT. It also got a new timber “wearing surface,” or top layer, and new signage and street markings to indicate that vehicles are not welcome. In the coming days, the agency plans to add more “vertical” elements, like planters, to discourage drivers from crossing.
The bridge is nearly ready for its grand re-opening. Photo courtesy of NYC DOT
“I’m thrilled that the historic Carroll Street Bridge will reopen as a dedicated connection for pedestrians, cyclists, and emergency vehicles, and I strongly support this people-first vision for the bridge,” Hanif said in a statement. “This outcome reflects years of advocacy from local residents and Brooklyn Community Board 6, who consistently told us they wanted the bridge prioritized for people, not through-traffic. In a neighborhood where so many residents walk and bike, this will strengthen connections across the canal and improve safety. I’m grateful to NYC DOT for listening to the community and embracing a vision that preserves this beloved landmark while meeting the needs of the Gowanus community.”
Though some worried that pedestrianizing the bridge would worsen local traffic, DOT said there was “no measurable impact” on the comparable Gowanus Canal crossings — the Union Street, Third Street and Ninth Street bridges — and that the Carroll Street Bridge saw relatively few vehicle crossings to begin with.
With just one lane, it typically saw only around 1,000 vehicle crossings a day, per News12, the smallest number of any DOT-operated bridge.
Designated a city landmark in 1987, the bridge has suffered setbacks before. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy flooded the bridge operator’s house with over four feet of water and damaged its motors and electrical equipment, per the New York Times. That work — including replacing the wooden deck and repairing beams and bulkheads — cost about $800,000, funded in part by grants from FEMA. Just two years earlier, it got a more minor facelift, with new concrete, paint and “spool mechanism.”