New York’s Fifth Avenue Redesign Is Both Progress and a Missed Opportunity
Midtown Manhattan is one of the densest, pedestrian-heavy, most transit-rich parts of the world. Yet along one of its most iconic thoroughfares, Fifth Avenue, the street design still puts cars first, pedestrians second, and transit-, micromobility- and bike-users last.
That absurdity becomes even more glaring when you consider the immense pedestrian traffic, and the public transit flows around it.
The current proposed redesign, under the banner of the Future of Fifth initiative, offers a chance to turn the page.
With an investment in the hundreds of millions, this could become a model promenade rather than a traffic gauntlet. But as I’ll argue in this article, the proposal has promise, but falls short of its potential.
A Quick Street Comparison: Barcelona’s Passeig de Sant Joan vs New York’s Fifth Avenue
Before we get into fear-mongering about how taking away car lanes ruins cities (it does the opposite), I’d like to show an example of a street that New York’s Fifth Avenue should be like: Barcelona’s Passeig de Sant Joan.
These are not untested proposals. Major streets in cities around the world prioritize pedestrians, buses, cyclists, outdoor seating, and trees over the unfettered takeaway of private cars.
Passeig de Sant Joan has a very wide sidewalk with lots of outdoor seating, public seating, trees planted, a bus-only lane in each direction, a separated bike lane in each direction, and one lane for cars.
Fifth Avenue has one lane for parking (wtf??), 2-4 lanes for cars, a bus-only lane that’s often blocked by cars, and a normal sidewalk.
I start here to put forth that something like Passeig de Sant Joan is what New York’s Fifth Avenue should become.
What’s Actually Being Proposed
The partnership between the City, through the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Future of Fifth Partnership, is developing a plan to redesign Fifth Avenue from Bryant Park to Central Park. That’s from 34th St to 59th St.
They say they want to transform this section of Fifth into “a world-class, pedestrian-forward promenade from Bryant Park to Central Park.
That means wider sidewalks, shorter crosswalks, and a general reallocation of space away from cars and toward people.
Here’s a quick rundown of the proposed changes, which you can read more about in a press release by the city.
- Wider sidewalks — from roughly 23 feet to 33.5 feet in some blocks — to handle the enormous pedestrian flows.
- Shorter crosswalks and fewer car lanes — travel lanes reduced from five to three in some sections. This makes it easier and safer for pedestrians to cross the street.
- More trees, planters, and public seating. We desperately need more trees and green space in New York, so this is great.
- Lighting and public realm improvements designed to make the avenue feel safer and more vibrant at night.
- Estimated cost: early reports list about $400 million fully funded, while later ones mention up to $550 million as the scope expanded, as reported by Streetsblog.
- Timeline: schematic design completion is targeted for summer 2025, with construction beginning around 2028.
All of this is genuinely an improvement.
3. What’s Good About This Proposal
Let’s start with the positives. There’s a lot here that, on paper, moves Fifth Avenue in the right direction.
For one, it’s more pedestrian-oriented than what exists now.
Widening sidewalks directly responds to the 5,400+ pedestrians per hour the street already sees during peak times. The holiday surges reach up to 23,000 people per hour.
The added trees, seating, and planting should make it easier for people to pause, rest, or simply exist on Fifth without being jostled by foot traffic or squeezed against traffic barriers.
I’ve written plenty about the importance of “green infrastructure.” Trees provide shade that reduces AC bills, absorb rainwater, filter air, and more.
The reduction of car lanes, even if modest, is also a step in the right direction. For decades, Midtown has been treated like a place cars need to pass through, rather than a place people already are.
Economically, the City projects the redesign will “pay for itself in less than five years,” citing higher property and sales tax revenues from an improved pedestrian environment. This is true, and great. But to me it’s sad that there needs to be a financial incentive for governments that exist to make our lives better to *checks notes* make our lives better.
And Yet, It’s a Missed Opportunity
And yet, when I look at this, I feel that it’s playing it safe.
Bike lanes Got cut out entirely
The earlier iteration of the redesign included both a protected bike lane and a two-bus-lane configuration.
The current draft eliminates the bike lane completely.
As a cyclist, this is dissapointing, as we know from other major cities, and frankly from other New York projects like Broadway, that bike lanes work great on car-light streets.
Bus service Got downgraded
The changes also come at the expense of transit. By cutting or narrowing the bus lanes, the plan risks slower bus speeds, and buses only going one direction.
Yes, lots of people are pedestrians, but many of them take transit to the area.
Still too much space for private cars
Even with lane reductions, the plan leaves two lanes for private vehicles in many segments, despite the fact that only around 5% of people using the street arrive in private cars, as Streetsblog reported. Barcelona’s Passeig de Sant Joan has one lane for private cars.
If we’re going to spend all this time and money, why not do it right? If not bus-only, then why not one lane for cars and protected bike lanes?
I like the way Transportation Alternatives put it in their press release, “This plan fails to meet the moment.”
- Delayed timeline: Construction isn’t set to begin until 2028, which means at least three more years of overcrowded sidewalks, congested traffic, and cyclist-pedestrian conflict before any of these changes even start. (NY1) For a city that moves fast when it comes to car infrastructure, the slow pace of progress for people-oriented design is telling. Why does it take us three years to begin construction on what looks like planting a few trees and reallocating some space? Genuinely, I want answers.
- A lack of vision: Many advocates — including Transportation Alternatives — argue that this plan tweaks rather than transforms. (Transportation Alternatives) For a corridor as prominent as Fifth Avenue, a truly bold approach would have been justified: a bus-only or car-free stretch for much of its length, robust protected bike lanes, and public space worthy of the avenue’s cultural and economic weight.
Why Does This Cost So Much Money? Why Will It Take So Long
When I look at this and see that it could cost between $400 million and $550 million. (Streetsblog), and that it won’t start until 2028, I just wonder… why.
It looks like you’re adding some trees and converting some car space into pedestrian space.
Here’s how they argue why it’s going to cost so much.
- Underground utility work: The city says it involves major sewer and water main upgrades, coordinated trenching, and other below-ground infrastructure work that has to be done before anything else. I guess that makes sense.
- Logistical complexity: Fifth Avenue is one of the busiest retail corridors in the world. Working here means tight construction windows, high disruption costs, and complex phasing to keep businesses open and traffic moving. Those soft costs — planning, management, traffic mitigation — can be huge.
In other words, it’s expensive because it’s Fifth Avenue, not just any avenue. The question, though, is whether the final design will justify that level of investment.
I get that, and at the same time, I could see the city implementing basically free changes that they have on other streets in the meantime.
In this video, you can see a cheap redesign of 9th Ave, where the city “widened the sidewalk” with bollards. Plant some trees, and you make it permanent.
But what do I know? I’m just a guy with a blog.
The Future of Fifth is Progress
Even if it’s expensive, takes a long time, and isn’t as great as it good be, I support almost any form of pedestrian-first investment.
As I like to say, think radically, act incrementally.
It’s important we don’t let perfection keep us from making progress. At the same time, it’s important to push for the bigger changes that we know are possible.
