Father Capodanno Boulevard
History
Fr. Capodanno Boulevard was originally conceived by New York City parks commissioner Robert Moses, as the northernmost stretch of a planned limited-access highway to be named Shore Front Drive. The road was built in 1955–1958 as Seaside Boulevard, as part of an improvement to the boardwalk. The first section of the boulevard opened in 1957. The name was changed in 1976 to honor Vincent R. Capodanno, a local Roman Catholic chaplain who was killed in the Vietnam War in 1967.
Description
The road exists today as the primary boulevard for the communities and public parks of Staten Island's East Shore. The road currently consists of six vehicular lanes: four driving lanes, a parking lane with turning bays southbound and a bus lane northbound. Previously existing bicycle lanes were removed in 2010 "without any discernible public process". Northbound and southbound traffic is divided by a grassy center median. To avoid Hylan Boulevard's traffic congestion, Father Capodanno Boulevard is also used as a "short cut" to the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge by residents of the island's more inland and southern communities.
The entire boulevard suffered extensive damage and flooding during Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. The East Shore Seawall will roughly parallel the road.
Transportation
Father Capodanno Boulevard is covered by the S51/S81 local buses north of Midland Avenue, as do the SIM5, SIM6, SIM9 express routes to and from Manhattan. The S52 serves it between Seaview Avenue and Sand Lane.
Major intersections
Major intersections include:
- Lily Pond Avenue (northern end)
- Sand Lane
- Seaview Avenue
- Slater Boulevard
- Hunter Avenue
- Midland Avenue
- Lincoln Avenue
- Greeley Avenue
References
- ^ "Ground is broken for boardwalk on Staten Island". Brooklyn Times-Union. August 11, 1935. p. 24. Retrieved September 18, 2019 – via newspapers.com
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- ^ "New Road to Open on Staten Island; New Boulevard Leads Way to Richmond Shore Project". The New York Times. October 28, 1957. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
- ^ Engels, Mary (June 20, 1976). "On the Isle". New York Daily News. p. 938. Retrieved September 21, 2019 – via newspapers.com .
- ^ "Franklin D. Roosevelt Boardwalk and Beach Highlights: Capodanno Memorial". NYC Parks. Retrieved September 21, 2019.
- ^ Fried, Ben (November 18, 2010). "Cyclists Blindsided By City's Erasure of Father Capodanno Bike Lane". Streetsblog NYC. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
- ^ "Staten Island Bus Map" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. January 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Bascome, Erik (September 14, 2018). "MTA express bus changes: New SIM9, South Shore extension and more". Staten Island Advance. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
