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Plans Afoot For New High Bridge Bike Lane

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Now that the High Bridge between Manhattan and the Bronx has reopened, the city Department of Transportation wants to make it easier to get there.

As WCBS 880's Jim Smith reported, high school students in a bicycle club helped spraypaint the outline for what will be a new bike lane leading to High Bridge Park.

Plans Afoot For New High Bridge Bike Lane

Mike Arijano is one of the teens advocating for the improvements.

"It's not only connecting two boroughs together, it's also connecting the community together," he said.

The High Bridge, with its stone arches evoking ancient Rome, was built in the mid-19th century. It spans the Harlem River, connecting Manhattan's Washington Heights and the Bronx's Highbridge neighborhoods.

It reopened for the first time in 45 years this past Tuesday.

Now, the planned improvements include new bike lanes and pedestrian crosswalks in several key near the park, as the DOT experts an influx of visitors to the newly-reopened bridge.

"Making it easier to really have access to the bridge if you're walking, but also if you're riding a bike" is the goal, said state Assemblyman Guillermo Linares (D-Manhattan).

The DOT said the improvements are also an extension of the mayor's Vision Zero initiative to reduce death and injury.

The $61.8 million restoration of the bridge began in January 2013. The bridge is now open daily from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Historic sites near the span include Bennett Park, Manhattan's highest point. The Little Red Light House under the George Washington Bridge also is nearby.

(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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