NEW YORK (AP) – New York City’s main bus terminal, ridiculed for leaky roofs, dirty bathrooms and frequent delays, could be a major overhaul.
The New York and New Jersey Port Authority on Thursday unveiled a proposal to rebuild and expand the downtown Manhattan bus terminal.
“Everyone knows the bus terminal. Very few have anything good to say about it, “said Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton.” It’s been a long time since this building was replaced. “
The new station would be built on top of the current one, with elegant glass-walled entrances and added infrastructure to accommodate more buses. Ramps spanning several blocks would be moved and a storage building would be built to keep empty buses off the streets.
Construction could begin in 2024, finish in 2031 and cost up to $ 10 billion, the Port Authority said. About $ 3 billion would come from the sale of rights to build four commercial buildings in the area, including one at the top of the terminal. It would also require local and federal funding.
The Port Authority bus terminal opened in 1950 on Eighth Avenue, between 40th and 42nd Streets near Times Square.
A statue of Ralph Kramden, the fictional bus driver of “The Honeymooners,” stands outside its main entrance. He also provided a suitable backdrop for “Midnight Cowboy,” the 1969 film that illuminated New York’s underground world.
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the terminal handled more than 250,000 passenger trips a week, many traveling from New Jersey. A study commissioned by the Port Authority projected that the figure would increase to more than 330,000 by 2040.
Tom Wright, president of the Regional Plan Association, a think tank on urban planning, called the new plan “a creative approach to a complicated problem.”
“Fixing the Port Authority bus terminal for the 260,000 people who trust it every day of the week is one of the highest infrastructure priorities for our region,” he said. “The prosperity of our tri-state area will depend on our ability to provide access to the entire region and connect people with jobs.”
Officials have been debating the replacement or overhaul of the bus terminal, the busiest in the country, for years. But the political dispute between lawmakers and Port Authority officials in both states left the project stalled as other major infrastructure projects progressed, including a new World Trade Center transit center and multimillion-dollar reforms at LaGuardia airports. , JFK and Newark Liberty.
The bus terminal was not included in the Port Authority’s ten-year capital plan in 2014, which increased the anger of New Jersey travelers and lawmakers.
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Associated Press writer Michael R. Sisak contributed to this report.