Hylan Boulevard

File:ON HYLAN BOULEVARD, STATEN ISLAND - NARA - 547866.jpg

On Hylan Boulevard, 1973. Photo by Arthur Tress.

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Northeast end

Hylan Boulevard is a major northeast-southwest boulevard in the New York City borough of Staten Island, and the longest street in a single borough in the city. It is approximately long, and runs from the North Shore neighborhood of Rosebank, then along the entire East Shore, to the South Shore neighborhood of Tottenville. It was renamed in 1923 for New York City mayor John F. Hylan, before which it was known as Southfield Boulevard and the northern segment as Pennsylvania Avenue.

Hylan Boulevard is one of Staten Island's busiest thoroughfares, carrying over 44,000 vehicles per day. The increased volume, built up over decades, has resulted in the road becoming New York City's newest "Boulevard of Death" according to Transportation Alternatives.

Route description

Hylan Boulevard begins at Alice Austen House at the southeast end of Edgewater Street in Rosebank, its first major intersection coming at , with Bay Street. It becomes divided by street markings at Tompkins Avenue, but then splits at and crosses the Staten Island Expressway over two separate overpasses.(one northbound, one southbound). Upon merging again, it becomes Steuben Street, and Hylan Boulevard continues east of there, snaking further through the neighborhood of Arrochar. Steuben joins Hylan again at . Half a mile later, Hylan intersects with Old Town Road and Quintard Street, at which point it begins a predominantly straight southwesterly run. Major intersections following include Seaview Avenue (3.2 miles) and Midland Avenue (4.0 miles). At , Hylan intersects with New Dorp Lane at what is known to be one of Staten Island's worst intersections in terms of traffic and collisions. Continuing southwest from there, it intersects Tysens Lane (5.2 miles), reverse-curves at approximately , and then continues straight southwest again past Great Kills Park. Major intersections include Buffalo Street (6.1 miles) and Nelson Avenue (7.5 miles). At , Hylan intersects with Richmond Avenue, another major Island thoroughfare. Continuing, the last portion of divided roadway ends at Arden Avenue (8.7 miles), and the boulevard continues westward through the neighborhoods of the South Shore, ending at Conference House Park in Tottenville.

Attractions

As an integral artery of Staten Island, Hylan Boulevard is a commercial corridor and a heavily trafficked roadway. At the northernmost end is Buono Beach, a small park with views of New York Harbor, as well as the Alice Austen House (address: 2 Hylan Blvd.), the historical home of native Island photographer Alice Austen and one of the few remaining Dutch Colonial structures on the Island.

Commercial establishments of various kinds line the boulevard's north-central stretch, with larger shopping centers in and around the New Dorp neighborhood. At Buffalo Street is the entrance to Great Kills Park, part of the larger Gateway National Recreation Area. In the neighborhood of Great Kills there are more businesses, but south of Richmond Avenue, the boulevard is almost entirely residential or parkland.

History

The road was part of the Jersey Coast Highway, running from the Staten Island Ferry's St. George Terminal to Cape May, New Jersey.

Transportation

Hylan Boulevard is served by many MTA NYCT bus routes, local and express, including service to Brooklyn and Manhattan:

• The primary bus for this corridor is the Template:NYC bus link, serving it between Tompkins Avenue, and either Craig Avenue (Bricktown Mall) or Main Street (St. George Ferry), when running the full route. Other buses run between Tompkins Avenue and Richmond or Luten Avenues.
• The Template:NYC bus link Select Bus Service runs between Richmond Avenue and Narrows Road, but is absent between Steuben Street and Olga Place.
• From Sand Lane, the Template:NYC bus link heads west to Clove Road, and the Template:NYC bus link heads east to Fingerboard Road.
• All Template:NYC bus link and some Template:NYC bus link buses to Grant City run from Midland to Lincoln Avenues.
• The Template:NYC bus link runs between Guyon Avenue and either Ebbitts Street (New Dorp), or Tysens Avenue (Port Richmond).
• Additional weekday service is provided by the Template:NYC bus link between Richmond and Nelson Avenues, the Template:NYC bus link between Seguine and Luten Avenues, and the Template:NYC bus link until evening between Richmond Avenue and either Craig Avenue (Tottenville), or Main Street (Port Richmond).
• The following express routes provide service on Hylan Boulevard to/from Richmond Avenue:
  • The Template:NYC bus link head east to Steuben Street, and are joined with the Template:NYC bus link west of Midland Avenue, the Template:NYC bus link between Nelson and Midland Avenues, and the Template:NYC bus link east of Tysens Avenue (Midtown) or Ebbitts Street (New Dorp).
  • The Template:NYC bus link is the only express route that heads west from Richmond, terminating at Woods of Arden Road.
• The Template:NYC bus link runs between Craig Avenue and either Bedell Avenue (Midtown), or Page Avenue (Tottenville).
• Also from Craig Avenue, the Template:NYC bus link heads to Seguine Avenue, while the Template:NYC bus link continues to Huguenot Avenue and is joined with the Template:NYC bus link at Luten Avenue.
• The Template:NYC bus link runs between Poillon and Arden Avenues.

While the current Staten Island Railway never crosses Hylan's path, it largely parallels the boulevard. Many stations along the line are half a mile to a mile and a half (one or two km) further inland, with the closest being the Old Town station. The former South Beach Branch of the railway did cross the boulevard just east of Rosebank station.