Completion of the project was originally set for October 2001 , but it was delayed for years due to damage caused by the September 11 attacks . The highway , which runs just west of the World Trade Center , played a major role in the September 11 , 2001 attacks and its aftermath . The famous flag raising photograph by Thomas E. Franklin of the Bergen Record took place by the highway on the northwest corner of the site . In addition , three chunks of the tower that crashed into the highway were used in iconic pictures of the day . Emergency personnel went down the West Side Highway and were greeted by cheering crowds at Christopher Street on their return . Virtually all the debris from the Center traveled up the West Side Highway to be shipped off by barge . For the last half of the month , out-of-town ambulances waited on the highway for a chance to help injured patients
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
West Side Highway