Gowanus Expressway & 3rd Avenue at 53rd Street

Gowanus Expressway, 3rd Avenue and 53rd Street meet at a six-way junction in Sunset Park (West), Brooklyn. Between 2021 and 2025, 28 police-reported crashes were recorded here, against a median of seven crashes for a Brooklyn corner. In 2025, 1,222 school-zone speed camera tickets were recorded here. Al Madrasa Al Islamiya is 160 feet away. The nearest subway, 53 St, is about three minutes on foot, and two subway lines stop within a ten-minute walk. Within a five-minute walk are 13 public places, nine of them religious buildings, and 13 places to eat.

Safety record
32 hurt
28 police-reported crashes, 2021–2025
Nearest subway
53 St
700 feet · 3 min on foot · R
Nearest bus stop
110 feet
3 Av/53 St · B37
Within a walk
13 places
9 religious buildings, 1 day care or pre-K site and 3 more kinds, within five minutes

Map

Layers
Gowanus Expressway & 3rd Avenue at 53rd Street Nearby corners, linked

Getting there

How walks are measured

Subway

The nearest subway station is 53 St, 700 feet from this corner, about three minutes on foot.

  • 2 lines within a ten-minute walk
  1. 53 St R
    700 feet
    R

Next trains at this station

Manhattan
1 line
  1. R …
Southbound
1 line
  1. R …

Also within a walk

  1. 59 St N, R
    0.4 miles
    N R

The MTA's permanent art catalog lists “Untitled” (2017) by Mickalene Thomas at the 53 St station.

Bus

The nearest bus stop is 3 Av/53 St, 110 feet away, for the B37.

  • 4 routes within a ten-minute walk
  1. 3 Av/53 St B37
    110 feet
    B37

Next buses at this stop

  1. B37 …

Live arrivals

Cycling

  • 20 bicycle racks within 820 feet
  • 1 more bike-share station within a five-minute walk

Nearest bike-share station

  1. 53 St & 4 Ave 25 docks in all
    650 feet

By car

The nearest highway entrance is the ramp to the Gowanus Expressway eastbound at 3rd Avenue & Connector, 0.4 miles by car along the streets.

  1. 5705 2nd Avenue Gas station
    0.4 miles
  2. 140 58th Street Charging for electric cars, two Level 2 chargers
    0.6 miles

Safety record

How crashes are counted

Between 2021 and 2025, police reported 28 crashes at this corner, more than the median of seven crashes for a Brooklyn corner.

  • 32 people injured
  • 0 people killed
  • 3 of those hurt, on foot
  • 1 of those hurt, on a bike

The most recent crash recorded here was in May 2026.

What the city has done here

  • Leading pedestrian interval, March 2019

Camera tickets

How tickets are counted

In 2025, 1,222 school-zone speed camera tickets were issued for violations recorded at this corner, the 656th most of the 1,957 corners in the city where any were issued.

In 2026 so far, through August 27, 526 more were issued.

Every corner with speed camera tickets

About this corner

Where facts come from
ZIP code
11220
Community board
Brooklyn Community Board 7
City Council district
38
Police precinct
72
Neighborhood (City Planning area)
Sunset Park (West)

The streets

  • Up to two travel lanes
  • One of the streets is one-way

Homes

About 1,500 homes stand within 820 feet of this corner, a mix of apartment buildings and smaller houses. The buildings holding them mostly went up between 1908 and 1931.

Since 2014 at least 2 new affordable homes have been completed within 820 feet.

Trees

NYC Parks records 37 trees within 330 feet; the most common is the pin oak.

Parking on the streets meeting here

How signs are read
  • 53 signs on these blocks
  • 17 different rules

The sign wording is DOT's, as recorded between September 2017 and June 2026; the 12 rules shown are the first by street and side, and the sign on the street decides.

East side of 3rd Avenue

  • No parking 6 signs NO PARKING SATURDAY 9:30AM-11AM
  • No parking 4 signs NO PARKING TUESDAY FRIDAY MIDNIGHT-3AM

West side of 3rd Avenue

  • No parking 1 sign NO PARKING ANYTIME
  • No parking 4 signs NO PARKING MONDAY THURSDAY MIDNIGHT-3AM
  • No parking 1 sign NO PARKING SATURDAY 11:30AM-1 M
  • No parking 5 signs NO PARKING SATURDAY 11:30AM-1PM
  • Truck loading only 2 signs TRUCK LOADING ONLY 6AM-6PM EXCEPT SUNDAY

North side of 53rd Street

  • No parking 6 signs NO PARKING MONDAY 9:30AM-11AM
  • No parking 4 signs NO PARKING THURSDAY 11:30AM-1PM
  • No standing 1 sign NO STANDING SCHOOL DAYS 7AM-4PM
  • Truck loading only 2 signs TRUCK LOADING ONLY MONDAY-FRIDAY 6AM-6PM
  • Truck loading only 1 sign TRUCK LOADING ONLY MONDAY-FRIDAY 7AM-7PM

Schools and places within a walk

How places are listed

Thirteen public places are within a five-minute walk.

  • 9 religious buildings
  • 1 day care or pre-K site
  • 1 fire station
  • 1 library
  • 1 school

Schools and child care

  1. Al Madrasa Al Islamiya School
    160 feet
  2. Grand Street Settlement Preschool, ages 2 to 5
    1,150 feet

Libraries, museums and history

  1. Sunset Park Library
    1,200 feet

Houses of worship

  1. Salem Gospel Tabernacle House of worship
    820 feet
  2. St Jacobi Lutheran Church House of worship
    880 feet
  3. Pentecostal Evangelist Church House of worship
    900 feet
Show all 4
  1. The Light of the World Church House of worship
    910 feet

Fire and police

  1. Battalion 40/Engine 201/Ladder 114 Fire station
    1,110 feet

Bank branches

  1. Chase Bank branch
    1,250 feet

Supermarkets

  1. Bravo Supermarket
    0.3 miles
  2. Pioneer Supermarkets Supermarket
    0.4 miles

Food stores and places to eat

Within a five-minute walk there are 13 places to eat and 18 food stores.

Not on record for this corner: a designated landmark or historic district within 820 feet.

Nearby corners

The eight nearest corners on foot, seven of them within a three-minute walk:

See every intersection along 3rd Avenue, 53rd Street or Gowanus Expressway.

Sources: NYPD, NYC Finance, NYC DOT, MTA, New York City's bike-share system, NYS Environmental Conservation, NYC City Planning, US Department of Energy, NYC Housing Preservation and Development, NYC Parks, NYC Technology and Innovation, NYC Health, FDIC, NYS Agriculture and Markets and USDA, retrieved September 18 – October 6, 2026.