Since the early 1950s, thick-shafted, massive guy wired stoplights have guarded busier NYC intersections. They now number in the thousands since their introduction.
However, very occasionally around town, you would see a simpler version of these stoplights, with cylindrical shafts and straight masts instead of lengthy curved ones.
While on a walk in Washington Heights in 1999 I spotted this one at Riverside Drive and a pedestrian walkway spanning the Henry Hudson Parkway. As this Google Street View image shows, it has since been replaced by the thick-shafted general issue stoplight.
On May 12, 2005, the high brick wall beside Riverside Drive, constructed in 1908, collapsed onto the roadway. Modern views show a distinct style change in the replacement wall, though the decades may render the difference less obvious.
In 1999, a pair of these style stoplights were catercorner on Church Street and Park Place. This pair, too, has since been replaced by conventional models.
Did these unusual stoplights appear elsewhere in NYC? Comment…as you see fit in Comments below.
3/21/17