Can anyone explain how NYC streets work

[nealymouse]

I spent the weekend in NYC with my teen daughter her friend and her mom. We had such a great time but we really wasted so much time trying to figure out what way to turn LOL.

Say we were on 43rd and 8th how do we know what way is 43nd?

Streets crossed I noticed name to name and number to number?

Could someone explain the system to me so I can return and not look like a lost fool!!!

 

[LoraJ]

If you are on the west side, on 43rd, and the numbers are getting lower, you are heading east. From 5th Avenue, that is where West will begin. Between 5th Ave and 6th the street #'s are 1-99, between 6th and 7th they are 100 - 199, etc & etc.

Whenon 8th Avenue, heading North the numbered streets go up in number, and go down when heading south. You are heading North if the street addresses increase.

If that makes sense.

 

[BelleWDW]

Try getting a map . They were in the Tour books I bought

Avenues run north south-First ave, Second Avenue
Numbered streets run east to west, lower numbers at the southmost tip of Manhatten

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

The trick is to know which direction each Avenue runs.

For example, the 4 5 6 trains run on Lexington. Lexington goes down (southbound). If you come out of the train at 42nd & Lexington and you want to get to 43rd, you look at the traffic and you walk the opposite direction of it (since 43rd is north, or up, from 42nd).

 

[SandrA9810]

It's like Miami... all numeric order in a grid. I miss Miami, it was soo easy to get anywhere.

Like my old address in Miami was 10** nw 131 st. Streets run east and west, avenues run north and south. So I lived on the corner of 10th ave and 131 st. So from the center of Miami, (Miami ave and Flagler Street are 0) go 131 streets north, and 10 streets to the west.
So no matter what address you were given, it was very easy to find. You first looked to see if it was northeast, northwest, southeast, or southwest and go from there. There's a few places here and there that don't follow those rules, like Coral Gables, but for the most part it's easy to figure out.

So if you know where 0 is on the grid of New York, the further you get from that the higher the numbers get.

 

[GeorgeG]

Generally, avenues run north and south and streets run east and west and usually, but not always, alternate direction (one-way) every block with some two-way streets thrown in. Broadway is sort of on a diagonal north/south with two-way traffic. The real challenge is parking.

 

[golfgal]

Slightly off topic but we lived in a town where 0 wasn't the starting number for the grid-5th was (I think it was 5th). If you lived on the 700 block of a street one would assume that the cross streets would be 7th and 8th but they were 2nd and 3rd. There are a couple posters on this board that live in that town and know what I am talking about.

Maps are good if you know which direction you are facing. I know when we were in DC if we couldn't see the capital or the Washington monument it was difficult to get your bearings.

 

[nealymouse]

Thank you, That makes since!!!!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

In Manhattan, all the North-South streets (which usually are marked as Avenues) the lowest numbers are at the South end and the highest numbers at the North end. And unless you have a paper with the way to calculate the numbers, it will make no sense. For example on one avenue, 1500 may be between 49th and 50th streets while on another avenue betwwn 49th and 50th streets may only be 400.

For the East-West streets there are two rules. Almost all are one-way and "Evens Go East" is the rule to remember. Also, 5th Avenue is the divider, so the "units" block is either side of 5th Avenue and the numbers get higher each block away. So on the East Side, for example, all the addresses between 3rd and 4th Avenues will be in the range 100-199. The West side is more confusing, becuase from 60th street up to about 110th street is Central Park where there are no street addresses. So, for example, between 9th and 10th Avenue is the 40's would be the 300-399 while in the 80's it would be 100-199.

And this is the simnple version. When you go into the other boroughs the street naming is handled differently.

 

[crazyme5kids]

I spent the weekend in NYC with my teen daughter her friend and her mom. We had such a great time but we really wasted so much time trying to figure out what way to turn LOL.

Say we were on 43rd and 8th how do we know what way is 43nd?

Streets crossed I noticed name to name and number to number?

Could someone explain the system to me so I can return and not look like a lost fool!!!

In Times Square, walk with the traffic on 8th Ave. (the same direction the cars head) and you will be heading down, 43rd, 42nd etc.... Walk against the traffic on 7th Ave. and you will be heading up, 42nd, 432rd... etc...