high bridge

The High Bridge (originally the Aqueduct Bridge) is the oldest bridge in New York City, having originally opened as part of the Croton Aqueduct in 1848 and reopened as a pedestrian walkway in 2015 after being closed for over 40 years.

A steel arch bridge with a height of 140 ft (43 m) over the Harlem River, High Bridge connects the New York City boroughs of the Bronx and Manhattan. The eastern end is located in the Highbridge section of the Bronx near the western end of West 170th Street, and the western end is located in Highbridge Park in Manhattan, roughly parallel to the end of West 174th Street.

Although the bridge was originally completed in 1848 as a stone arch bridge, the Harlem River span was replaced with a steel arch during a 1927 renovation. The bridge was closed to all traffic from the 1970s until its restoration, which began in 2009.

The bridge was reopened to pedestrians and bicycles on June 9, 2015.

The High Bridge was part of the first reliable and plentiful water supply system in New York City.

​The Old Croton Aqueduct was the first of its kind ever constructed in the United States. The innovative system used a classic gravity feed, dropping 13 inches (330 mm) per mile, or about 1/4" per 100' (~0.02%)[9] and running 41 miles (66 km) into New York City through an enclosed masonry structure crossing ridges, valleys, and rivers. University Avenue was later built over the southernmost mainland portion of the aqueduct, leading to the bridge.