I work on 1st Ave and 34th Street in East side Manhattan and I'm thinking about moving to Westchester, Pelham probably, by May. I live in Queens now and I'm completely unfamiliar with the Bronx. I'd like to ride my bike to work on most good days so I'm wondering what is the quickest and safest way to traverse the Bronx. When I say safest, I mean both in terms of avoiding unsafe neighborhoods as well as avoiding dangerous roads and particularly bad intersections. Although, I'm an experienced commuter and I feel at home on NYC streets

I know it's about 16-18 miles but it's doable for me on most days. So I don't worry much about distance.

I checked the maps, of course, but I'd like some input from people familiar with the area. It looks like Park Ave/Webster Ave as well as Grand Concourse have bike lanes and that looks like a straight route, so it should be quick. Then I could connect withe Bronx River Pkwy bikepath past the ZOO/Garden and that will take me to W 1st Street near Pelham.

Now, I also wonder, what's better: the Third Ave Bridge or the Willis Ave Bridge (looks like a separate bikeway).

I'll probably go for a ride to scout the route in the next few weeks.

I haven't cycled this exact area, but I have driven through sections. I wouldn't consider cycling through any of the parts of the Bronx that end up near the Third Ave Bridge or Willis Ave Bridge other than during the 5 Boro Ride, even during daylight.

I commute from North Jersey to Williamsburg down the West Side of Manhattan. West Side path may be your safe, though much longer route. I have met some riders from Westchester that commute this way, but I don't remember where they started from in Westchester. I have gone North from the GW Bridge to the South County Trailway. You can make connections to the Henry Hudson Bridge and go South from there along the River, if the construction is done on the bridge. But then you would have to go Crosstown. Or, you could come down Broadway which really is not bad until below Van Cortland Park and then connect to the West Side via Dyckman St.

That bad? Yeah, that side of Manhattan isn't probably the best either. I wouldn't mind adding a couple of miles to make the route safer.

I rode several times from Queens up to GWB so I'm familiar with the West Side path, although I never rode North from GWB. I could take one of the "smaller" streets to go crosstown, 34th has too much traffic. That won't be too bad.

I'm not even sure right now where I'll be moving to in Westchester, I just started planning. Ideally some place close to the Metro North and with good bike connection as well. I know some people in Pelham, that's why I started thinking about it, and it fits my budget. Thanks for the suggestions, I appreciate that.

Ouch... I looked up crime statistics for the Bronx and that doesn't look good. Except for few isolated areas and the parts along the Hudson, they're like 3-4 times the NYC average rates and higher; and much higher than the areas of Queens and Brooklyn I ride through now I know, it's statistics, but that's discouraging.

So it looks like riding through the central and South Bronx is out of question. The West side is indeed the only safe option. Or just ride the train

Or you could combine subway and cycling. Cycle around to the GWB Catch the 123 train near the GWB at Columbia University Hospital.

Yeah Adam, you definitely want to avoid the east side of the Bronx as much as possible. The bike paths are useless, Grand Concourse is riddled with cross streets and gets completely congested around Fordham Road. I grew up in VanCortlandt, you can get from the NYBG via Mosholu to Sedgwick Avenue and ride through Fort Independence down to Heath Avenue, will take you right to 225th Street, get on the Broadway Bridge from there. Turn onto W 218th St to Seaman Avenue, takes you to Dykman Street, Riverside Drive down to the Greenway.

I've done the 138th St Madison Ave Bridge and the 145th Street Bridge without incident. Both bridges are fairly short and there were other people making the crossing. Traffic in the South Bronx can get crazy.. especially after dark or when NYPD is in hot pursuit, which I imagine happens on a regular basis. The West Side Greenway up to the Henry Hudson Bridge over to Riverdale seems like a safer route but I'm not sure I'd want to do it after dark, especially without good high powered lights. A good portion of the route, Cherry Walk and north of 155th Street, or so is unlit at night, and the unmaintained path up to the HH Bridge in Inwood Park is steep and also unlit.

As andychrist suggested, the Broadway Bridge is probably the best if you're riding alone. There's a "BikeTrain" that currently leaves from midtown around 5:15 PM, two days a week, and goes up the West Side Greenway to Seaman Ave & 215th St. You can search them out on twitter or email nycbiketrain[at]gmail.com

I rode through the South Bronx and it's not bad. I never felt threatened or endangered. BUT, IME, the Bronx has some pretty aggro drivers so be careful.

With all due respect, any native or person who picks up a newspaper knows this.

Westchester is the last suburb within fifteen miles that I would choose to ride to midtown from....

God, I love Astoria.

Thanks for all the input. Yeah, I was suspecting that riding from Westchester won't be much fun. Those few times I have gone to the Bronx, I remember insane traffic mostly and lots of run down areas that didn't look safe. I guess if I really want to, I can ride to the West and then down the river to the West Side of Manhattan as some of you pointed out. Overall it seems though that I shouldn't hope for much and I should not make biking to work a priority at this point. Since I can't afford areas such as Riverdale my options are limited.

I want to get off of the island first so I can get to my favorite state parks in upstate easily on weekends and I want a quieter place with more open space than Queens.

Thought about New Jersey? Somewhere near the GWB?

Yes, I though about NJ too, but I haven't looked much into it yet. It has to be somewhere that I can take mass transit from easily too. I can't count on being able to ride a bike every single day. So it'd need to be close to trains.

As I am not from NJ I can't tell you anything about their mass transit, but I know they have it (PATH trains, e.g.).

The PATH doesn't allow non-folding bikes during rush hours.

I know. Metro North doesn't either I wasn't planning taking a bike on the train.

Yeah but at least you have the Subway as a rush hour alternative if you're going to Pelham.
With the PATH your only alternatives are the GWB or swim.

Excellent point!

There are many mass transit options from North Jersey. More expensive than just a subway ride. But you can use many bus lines including NJT buses or trains. Or you can park at the Vince Lombardi park and ride and take the bus to the Port Authority. Another option is to park at the Fort Lee historic park and walk or bike across the bridge to the subway.