Has anybody ridden the Hudson River Greenway through the 125th St construction area in the last few days? I came through last Wednesday around 7:30 a.m. and it was messier than it’s been all summer. The temporary setup just north of the West Harlem Piers seems to have shifted again.

Coming southbound, there are now two steel plates right at the point where the path narrows near the little construction office, and one of them has a lip that faces downhill. With road tires at 80 psi it was enough to make me unclip and walk. The signed route pushes you left into what used to be the pedestrian side, but the joggers are still using it because their own detour is blocked by a parked excavator. So you get this awkward merge where neither group has priority.

When I rode it back northbound in the afternoon, the flagger was only letting cyclists through in small groups, but a Citibike rider ahead of me caught a wheel in the joint between plates and nearly went down. The plate edges are getting polished and the construction dust over the metal was slippery.

Is this just a temporary thing tied to the paving they did near 122nd, or is it the start of the bigger sewer work that was scoped for this fall? More importantly, is there a better way for regular commuters? I usually stay on the path because I don’t love dealing with the double-parked cars on 125th, but I’d rather take the street for one block than eat a plate. Has anyone exited south of 137th and used 12th Ave/Riverside Drive recently? I’m on a narrow-tire bike, but I’m also trying to give a friend good advice for a Citibike ride later this week.

Rode it Saturday, yeah it's still jacked. The flagger wasn't even out when I went through around 9:30, so it was a free-for-all. I just walked my bike on the plates because that lip is no joke if you're clipped in. If you can, go through the little plaza by the 125th St pier entrance instead of staying on the main path. The curb cut onto 125th is annoying but at least you aren't mixing it up with the joggers. Citibike folks should definitely not try to bunny hop the joint, those heavy front ends hate that.

Oh wait, this is real? I did the Greenway for the first time last Sunday on a regular Citibike and thought I just picked a bad day for it. I hit that plate joint and thought the bike was broken for a second because the front wheel made a huge bang. I ended up walking it and felt so dumb seeing other people just roll through. Do you walk on the left or right side if the path is split? I don’t want to be that person blocking the bike lane.

YES, the polished plate edges are the worst!!! People don't realize the steel gets almost like ice when there's fine construction grit on it. I was on my 38c GravelKings and still felt the rear step out near the northbound plate. It’s the little expansion gap between the two plates that eats Citibike wheels—hard to see when the light is low in the morning.

Has anyone tried cutting through the little ramp up to the St. Clair or the 125th St footbridge? It’s a weird angle but avoids the worst of the pinch point. I wouldn't do it on a road bike with rim brakes after rain, but for a commuter with discs it's okay. Also, if you go through the West Harlem Piers parking lot, watch for the delivery vans backing out—nobody looks.

This is exactly why I keep telling people: don't ride the Greenway right by the construction barrier hugging the wall. The painted line there gets super slick too.

Thanks for the reports. Sounds like the plate is still the issue, not just my timing. @my_first_lease: don’t feel dumb—if you’re unsure, walking is the correct move in a construction merge like that. If the path is split and there are no signs, I usually treat the sections as two-way by default and stay as far right as possible unless the flagger directs otherwise. But in that particular setup, the “bike side” is left of the jersey barrier and the “pedestrian side” is right, at least heading south.

The reason I asked is I have to go to Riverbank State Park later this week and I’m trying to decide between the Greenway and Riverside Drive from 135th down. After listening to @EastHarlem_E and @DumboSunset, I’ll probably stay on 12th Ave/Riverside Drive for the short stretch and re-enter the Greenway at 125th or 122nd. The curb cut onto the path there is not great, but it beats eating a steel lip in traffic shoes.

One caveat, especially for Citibike riders: the 125th St exit from the path feeds you into a bus stop zone, and buses pull in pretty close. Better to use the crosswalk at St. Clair if you need to get onto the street grid, or go one block down to the smaller car-free path. Also, if you see a flagger, don’t treat them like a stoplight—they’ll wave groups through but can’t control every jogger with headphones.

I tried the Greenway around 125th yesterday because I wanted to avoid the hill on Riverside. The signs are confusing, not gonna lie. I followed one arrow right into a bunch of pedestrians and then had to backtrack. Is the detour different depending on which way you’re going? I was heading south and couldn’t tell if I was supposed to cross over or keep going. I basically just followed another cyclist who looked like they knew where they were going. Any tip for how to spot the turn before you’re on top of it? Also, is this area okay after dark? The construction lights were super bright and it made it hard to see the wet spots.

Honestly, the main move is just hit 12th Avenue if you’re on anything without fenders. The Greenway detour is fine midweek before 8 but after that it’s amateur hour. I’ve been taking Riverside Drive / 12th from 135th down to 125th and then cutting back on via the little service road. You deal with a couple cars but no steel plates. Only real annoyance is people parking in the bike lane by the school, but you can take the lane for a block. On a Citibike, I’d just walk the plates—the extra thirty seconds beats a bent axle from that gap.