The Promenade at Brooklyn Bridge
“Reimagining Brooklyn Bridge” Submission for The Van Alen Institute
The Vision for Change
Creating an aerial park for locals and tourists alike.
The curved additions to the existing Brooklyn Bridge Promenade augment the central alley, transforming it into an aerial park where tourists and locals alike can come to take in the views and soak up the Empire State of Mind.
These walkways create spaces for vendors and static pedestrians to take pictures or take a break, while freeing the central alley for cyclists and pedestrians continuing across, dynamically accommodating the varying uses of the existing Brooklyn Bridge Promenade and the surges in visitor traffic that pose safety hazards at present.
The Steps
Primary Observations
Expert Interviews (Engineers)
Stakeholder Mapping
Persona Development
Journey Mapping
Experience Framing and Requirements
Visual Identity Design
UI Design (for the associated mobile app)
The Tools
SketchUp
Figma
Adobe Illustrator
Keynote
The Driving Insight
The summer prior to The Van Alen Institute’s call for submissions to redesign the Brooklyn Bridge Promenade, my younger sister and I walked across the bridge on a whim one night. As we stopped along the bridge to enjoy the view, my sister turned to me and told me a joke. Almost immediately, she grabbed and pulled me out of the way of some psycho speeding across the bridge on a Citi Bike with no lights and no alarm.
While I don’t remember her joke, I do remember what she said after saving me: “I would hate to have to explain to mom that you got hit by a bike and fell into oncoming traffic.”
This proposal is designed with that scenario in mind and so that no one would have to tell their family such a story.
