Originally Posted by marca
Could someone please describe how bad of a climb these bridges in NYC really are?
I mapped out the manhattan bridge as a route on
www.mapitpronto.com and don't see any big deal. But I don't think the elevation data includes the bridge itself (only land). How much of a climb are the bridges? How steep of a climb are the bridges?
some bar napkin estimates...
Wikipedia lists the clearance of most ocean port bridges at at least 130 ft, so I'm guessing the international standard is somewhere near there. There are wiki entries for all the NYC bridges.
Add another 20 ft for the thickness for the road ironwork, and at least on the williamsburg, you're another 10 to 20 above the car lanes and J train.
So figure from 150 to 170 ft, probably having climbed from around 25 ft, in around 3/4 of a mile.
I'd be curious to see some more accurate figures.
the williamsburg and bkln are made tougher because you're always losing your rhythm and momemtum dodging random peds and cyclists. Gotta love the groups of orthodox women power walking and jogging.
Manhattan bridge is the least used bike route.