NYC Scaffolding

[XR250]

Spending some time in NYC and there is scaffolding everywhere. They all seem to be constructed basically the same. None of the purlin beams are ever attached to the dropped girder. Seems if something big fell on it, it could bounce the purlins off the girders and hit someone. What are your thoughts?
Also, the Manhattan Bridge is a phenomenally beautiful structure.

 

[SwinnyGG]

Anything big enough to 'bounce the purlins off of the girders' would obliterate the whole scaffold. Some little beam clamps or whatever would not stop that from happening.

 

[XR250]

How do you know that?

 

[SwinnyGG]

I've seen a lot of stuff hit drop protection scaffolds.

I mean, how do you know it's a problem?

 

[XR250]

I've seen a lot of stuff hit drop protection scaffolds.

I mean, how do you know it's a problem?

I don't know for sure but I have seen similar wood framed scaffolding on residential sites bounce apart from an impact. I assume these are just designed for static live loads?

 

[XR250]

Not related but i found this interesting...


"For many NYC residents and business owners, the most frustrating aspect of sidewalk sheds is their persistence. Once erected, they often remain indefinitely. In 2015, the de Blasio administration removed eight miles of inactive sheds from New York City Housing Authority properties. However, no such law applies to private buildings.

Private property owners often find it cheaper to maintain a sidewalk shed and pay violation fines than to fix their buildings. Erecting a shed costs about $25,000, with $700 in monthly maintenance fees, compared to the $250,000 or more required for facade repairs. "

 

[LittleInch]

Is that what you guys call scaffolding? Looks pretty meaty to me and more like a temporary structure.

And yes, they don't build bridges like that anymore.

This is from my home town

 

[XR250]

Is that what you guys call scaffolding? Looks pretty meaty to me and more like a temporary structure.

Apparently they are called "sidewalk sheds" and designed to protect pedestrians from falling debris.
Nice looking bridge.

 

[LittleInch]

Everyone thinks it's a fore runner to the Sydney Harbkur bridge, but was designed second and built first.

I personally think it's nicer as the two bows actually meet at the base of the towers.

 

[jerseyshore]

NYC facade work is so expensive no one wants to fix it and the quote about is correct, most owners would rather just leave these covered sheds than do the actual work. NYC owners and landlords are a different kind of slumlord than other parts of the country. Seems like they are all billionaires, but won't spend a dime to fix a falling down structure.

I can't tell you how many horrible sidewalk vaults there are. Probably most of them. And on the wider streets the vaults extend under the roadway.

NYC work is the bandaid capital of the world.

 

[SwinnyGG]

I don't know for sure but I have seen similar wood framed scaffolding on residential sites bounce apart from an impact. I assume these are just designed for static live loads?

The type in your photo is mostly used for protection of pedestrians from dropped materials from construction above, or from decaying buildings which have loose bricks or whatever. Sometimes they have actual scaffold on top of them, but a lot of times not.

 

[SwinnyGG]

Everyone thinks it's a fore runner to the Sydney Harbkur bridge, but was designed second and built first.

I personally think it's nicer as the two bows actually meet at the base of the towers.

I love old bridges like this one and the one XR250 posted. I wish we still built using these techniques, a bridge like that would be super interesting to build.

 

[ANE91]

Let’s just say that lawsuits regarding sidewalk sheds are not uncommon. I hope to never get licensed in NY.

 

[RenHen]

There's been quite a lot of discussion about these sheds, especially in the last few years. I know there's an attempt to increase regulatory pressure to repair facades instead of this silly state of affirs; the NYC Council just voted on some changes a few months ago to try to reduce their presence: https://council.nyc.gov/press/2025/03/26/2824/
Some alternate designs that look more like a steel tree than scaffolding also got approved a while back, but I rarely see these ones in person https://ny.curbed.com/2017/9/13/16301192/nyc-scaffolding-urban-umbrella

 

[cliff234]

These sheds are on just about every street in Midtown Manhattan. They appear to be almost semi-permanent. Some building owners even seem to be making money with them by selling advertising space on them - perhaps to offset the monthly rental cost. (I wonder how much they pay per month for these sheds.) I read that someone was killed in NYC several years ago from a piece of facade that fell off an old building.

Google " falling facade death "