Coordinates: 40°44′56.3″N 73°58′47.8″W / 40.748972°N 73.979944°W / 40.748972; -73.979944
This article is about the road tunnel. For the railroad tunnel, see Park Avenue Tunnel (railroad).The Park Avenue Tunnel passes under Park Avenue in the New York City borough of Manhattan, leading towards Grand Central Terminal. It once carried the New York and Harlem Railroad and later that company's streetcar line and was called the Murray Hill Tunnel. Due to the construction of Grand Central Terminal and the removal of tracks, the north end has been reconstructed for a steeper approach. It is now under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Transportation, and carries one lane of northbound car traffic from East 33rd Street to East 40th Street. From 40th Street north, traffic can follow the Grand Central Terminal Park Avenue Viaduct. Prior to August 3, 2008, the tunnel carried two-way traffic, but was reconfigured to increase pedestrian safety.
The tunnel was originally built as an open rock cut, completed in 1834, after which the NY&H Railroad was opened as far as Yorkville, to 85th Street. In the 1850s the cut was roofed over, using granite stringers from the original railroad bed south of 14th Street, thus creating the present tunnel. The vertical clearance is 8 feet 11 inches (2.71 m).
The Lexington Avenue Line of the New York City Subway runs parallel to the Park Avenue Tunnel in two tunnels below it.
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