New York’s longest “step street” is this dramatic three-block concrete staircase in the Bronx

Getting around the western Bronx by foot means encountering hilly streets, lots of hilly streets. The pitched terrain comes from ridges of bedrock formed millions of years ago extending into Northern Manhattan. Back in the early 1900s when the Bronx was undergoing urbanization, all these hills posed a challenge to transit engineers, since some roads would be too steep for vehicular traffic. The solution? Build a “step street,” basically an open-air masonry staircase not accessible to cars but that pedestrians could use to get up and down regular streets at different elevations. If you’ve ever seen Joker, then you likely remember the step street scene. It was filmed on what’s now known as the Joker Stairs on West 167th Street and Shakespeare Avenue in the Bronx, turning this grimy step street into a popular hashtag and tourist mecca. More than 100 step streets exist in New York City. But if you’re looking for the longest (and the one that might leave you seriously huffing and puffing),…