FDR Drive

Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive, commonly called FDR Drive for short, is a parkway on the east side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It starts near South and Broad Streets, just north of the Battery Park Underpass, and runs north along the East River to the 125th Street / Robert F. Kennedy Bridge / Willis Avenue Bridge interchange, where it becomes Harlem River Drive. All of FDR Drive is designated New York State Route 907L (NY 907L), an unsigned reference route. FDR Drive features a mix of below-grade, at-grade, and elevated sections, as well as three partially covered tunnels. The parkway is mostly three lanes in each direction, except for several small sections. By law, the current weight limits on FDR Drive from 23rd Street to Harlem River Drive in both directions is posted . Buses are not allowed to use the roadway north of 23rd Street because they exceed the road's maximum clearance and weight (although some do, including the MTA's express buses). All commercial vehicles (including trucks) are banned from all sections of FDR Drive, except for a short section just north of the Battery Park Underpass where the northbound lanes temporarily merge with South Street. The East River Greenway runs below, beside, or above FDR Drive along nearly its entire length, except for a section between 38th and 60th Streets. A plaque dedicating the East River Drive is visible on the southbound roadway before entering the Gracie Mansion tunnel at 90th Street. FDR Drive starts at the southern tip of Manhattan at South and Whitehall Streets in the Financial District. It rises from the underground Battery Park Underpass to an elevated viaduct above South Street, with an at-grade connection to South Street at exit 1. The elevated viaduct continues northeast, with an interchange at Brooklyn Bridge at exit 2. The elevated road, also known as the South Street Viaduct, continues until Gouverneur Slip, near the Manhattan Bridge interchange (exit 3), where there are a southbound exit and northbound entrance.