New York unveils Fifth Avenue redesign - Telemundo New York (47)

NEW YORK – Fifth Avenue is getting a makeover, and it’s a big makeover.

The proposed design, released Thursday, widens sidewalks by nearly half, shortens crosswalks to make them safer, reduces the number of lanes of traffic from five to three and adding planting and lighting to improve aesthetics and safety.

According to the mayor’s office, once completed, this project, the first major redesign in the route’s 200-year history, will pay for itself in less than five years through increase property and sales tax revenue.

Fifth Avenue is currently 100 feet wide, consisting of five lanes of vehicular traffic and two 23-foot sidewalks. Although pedestrians make up 70% of all traffic in the corridor, sidewalks make up only 46% of the space. Each block serves about 5,500 pedestrians an hour on a typical day and up to 23,000 people an hour during holidays, which is the equivalent of Madison Square Garden plus 4,000 more people, according to the village

Officials say the current Fifth Avenue configuration can no longer accommodate the volume of pedestrian traffic, as only 15 feet on each side is free for walking; the rest is used by road infrastructure such as signs, bus stops, lights and waste cans. (Scroll down to see more reports.)

City Hall

The new design nearly doubles the width of the sidewalks to 33.5 feet each, expands unobstructed walking space to 25 feet on each side and adds another 8.5-foot-wide section for trees (more on 230 new ones, plus 20,000 square feet). New seats are also part of the plan.

The design draws inspiration from historic Fifth Avenue landmarks and Art Deco influences, highlighting the iconic architectural features that are an integral part of the avenue’s visual identity. It is also inspired by the redesign of other iconic shopping streets, such as the Champs-Élysées in Paris, Serrano Street in Madrid, Bond, Oxford and Regent Streets in London and Ginza in Tokyo.

The effort is based on the basic principles of the “New” New York panel’s action plan, which identified public space as a key force for the city’s economic revitalization. Fifth Avenue has long been an economic engine for New York City.

The route is responsible for 313,000 direct and indirect jobs, generating $44.1 billion in total wages and $111.5 billion in total economic output annually.