Robert Moses: Queens — The World of Tomorrow

About This Tour

From ash dump to World's Fair, this tour traces Moses's most personal vision for Queens, a borough he transformed more thoroughly and more optimistically than perhaps any other in the city. Where others saw wasteland, Moses envisioned a gleaming symbol of progress, marshaling public and private resources to convert blighted industrial land into a stage for international spectacle and civic pride. Visit the parkways, expressways, pools, and stadiums that defined his car-friendly borough, each one a physical manifestation of his belief that mobility, recreation, and modern infrastructure could uplift ordinary citizens and showcase the promise of American ingenuity. These sprawling public works reflected a mid-century faith in engineering as a tool for social improvement, even as they prioritized automobiles over pedestrians and reshaped entire communities around the logic of the highway. Along the way, you will encounter the architectural remnants of his utopian ambitions alongside the quieter, everyday spaces that residents continue to use and reinterpret decades later. Much of what we understand about Robert Moses today comes from the work of Robert Caro, whose landmark 1974 biography The Power Broker drew on years of archival research and hundreds of interviews to expose how a never-elected official amassed extraordinary power over New York's parks, roads, and bridges. Caro's Pulitzer-winning account remains the definitive study of Moses's legacy, and his framing of Moses as a figure who prioritized automobile mobility over community life shapes how these tours read the infrastructure around you. A note before you begin: Robert Moses tours don't necessarily offer beautiful views. His work could be quite utilitarian at times — concrete overpasses, retaining walls, and highway embankments rather than picturesque vistas. But this bold infrastructure profoundly affects how the people living here navigate their daily lives and reinforces patterns of economic segregation that persist to this day. It explains why some parts of New York City are wonderfully walkable, while others feel cut off and car-dependent. As you walk, you'll also get to see how modern-day green space initiatives are softening the impact of Moses's more controversial work, reclaiming spaces beneath and beside his highways for community use, planting gardens, and building waterfront access where once there was only asphalt and chain-link fence. This walking tour offers a window into the mind of a planner who saw Queens as a canvas for his boldest ideas, and invites reflection on how his car-centric, spectacle-driven vision continues to shape the borough's identity, infrastructure, and everyday rhythms of life today.

Tour Highlights

Tour Route & Stops