Fifth Avenue originates at
Washington Square Park in
Greenwich Village and runs northwards through the heart of
Midtown, along the eastern side of
Central Park, where it forms the boundary of the
Upper East Side and through
Harlem, where it terminates at the
Harlem River at 142nd Street. Traffic crosses the river on the
Madison Avenue Bridge. Fifth Avenue serves as the dividing line for
house numbering and west–east streets in Manhattan; for example, it separates East 59th Street from West 59th Street. Higher-numbered avenues such as
Sixth Avenue are to the west of Fifth Avenue, while lower-numbered avenues such as
Third Avenue are to the east. The building lot numbering system worked similarly on the East Side before Madison and Lexington Avenues were added to the street grid laid out in the
Commissioners' Plan of 1811. Unlike at other avenues, west–east street addresses do not increment to the next hundred to the east of Madison and Lexington Avenues. The "most expensive street in the world" moniker changes depending on currency fluctuations and local economic conditions from year to year. For several years starting in the mid-1990s, the shopping district between 49th and
57th Streets was ranked as having the world's most expensive retail spaces on a cost per square foot basis. In 2008,
Forbes magazine ranked Fifth Avenue as being the most expensive street in the world. Some of the most coveted real estate on Fifth Avenue are the penthouses perched atop the buildings. The
American Planning Association (APA) compiled a list of "2012 Great Places in America" and declared Fifth Avenue to be one of the greatest streets to visit in America. This historic street has many world-renowned museums, businesses and stores, parks, luxury apartments, and historical landmarks that are reminiscent of its history and vision for the future.
Traffic pattern Fifth Avenue from
142nd Street to
135th Street carries
two-way traffic. Fifth Avenue carries
one-way traffic southbound from 143rd Street to 142nd Street and from 135th Street to
Washington Square North. The changeover to one-way traffic south of 135th Street took place on January 14, 1966, at which time
Madison Avenue was changed to one way uptown (northbound). From 124th Street to 120th Street, Fifth Avenue is cut off by
Marcus Garvey Park, with southbound traffic diverted around the park via Mount Morris Park West.
Parade route Fifth Avenue is the traditional route for many celebratory
parades in New York City; thus, it is closed to traffic on numerous Sundays in warm weather. The longest running parade is the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. Parades held are distinct from the
ticker-tape parades held on the
"Canyon of Heroes" on lower
Broadway, and the
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade held on Broadway from the
Upper West Side downtown to
Herald Square. Fifth Avenue parades usually proceed from south to north, with the exception of the
LGBT Pride March, which goes north to south to end in
Greenwich Village. The Latino literary classic by New Yorker
Giannina Braschi, entitled "Empire of Dreams", takes place on the
Puerto Rican Day Parade on Fifth Avenue.
Bicycling route Bicycling on Fifth Avenue ranges from segregated with a
bike lane south of
23rd Street, to scenic along
Central Park, to dangerous through Midtown with very heavy traffic during rush hours. There is no dedicated bike lane along most of Fifth Avenue. A protected bike lane south of 23rd Street was added in 2017, and another protected lane for bidirectional bike traffic between 110th and 120th Streets was announced in 2020. In July 1987,
New York City Mayor Ed Koch proposed banning bicycling on Fifth, Park, and Madison Avenues during weekdays, but many bicyclists protested and had the ban overturned. When the trial was started on August 24, 1987, for 90 days to ban bicyclists from these three avenues from 31st Street to 59th Street between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays,
mopeds would not be banned. On August 31, 1987, a state appeals court judge halted the ban for at least a week pending a ruling after opponents against the ban brought a lawsuit. A bike lane on Fifth Avenue between 59th and 42nd Streets was proposed in late 2022.
Public transportation Bus Fifth Avenue is one of the few major streets in Manhattan along which
streetcars did not operate. Instead, transportation along Fifth Avenue was initially provided by the
Fifth Avenue Transportation Company, which provided horse-drawn service from 1885 to 1896. It was replaced by
Fifth Avenue Coach, which continued to offer bus service. Double-decker buses were operated by the Fifth Avenue Coach Company until 1953 and again by
MTA Regional Bus Operations from 1976 to 1978. A
bus lane for Fifth Avenue within Midtown was announced in 1982. Initially it ran from 59th to 34th Streets. The bus lane opened in June 1983 and was restricted to buses on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Today, local bus service along Fifth Avenue is provided by the following routes downtown. Uptown service runs on the parallel Madison Avenue unless specified below. All crosstown service is westbound: • The
M1, M2 and M3 buses run from the Duke Ellington Circle to East 8th Street. M1 service originates at West 139th Street, runs in both directions north of West 135th Street, and uses Mount Morris Park West to get around Marcus Garvey Park. • The
M4 and
Q32 run to East 32nd Street in Midtown from West 110th and East 60th Streets, respectively. • The runs from West 59th to West 31st Streets and the
M55 from West 44th to East 8th Streets. Uptown buses use 6th Avenue. • The runs from East 106th Street to the 97th Street Transverse. • The runs from East 86th to East 85th Streets. • The run to East 66th Street from East 72nd and East 67th Streets, respectively. Numerous express buses from
Brooklyn,
the Bronx, and
Staten Island also run along Fifth Avenue.
Subway The
New York City Subway has never built a line underneath Fifth Avenue, likely because wealthy Fifth Avenue residents would have objected to any such line. • at • at • at
Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street • at
Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street ==Nicknames==