The Port Authority decides to build a new bus station in the footprint of the current station

After several years of community board meetings and consideration 30 different optionsThe Port Authority of New York and New Jersey decided to build a new bus terminal with the same footprint as the current station on 42nd Street.

While the ruler, During the state letter Port Authority By showing designs and siting, the agency gave a presentation this week filling in some but not all of the details.

The agency pledged that the project would be similar to the one it had recently completed Moynihan Train Hall In that it will be „of airport-like quality“ and its financing will involve a large portion of the private capital. The agency will not commit to a specified percentage of public / private funding.

The new bus terminal is expected to have a capacity of 30% more than the current facility, in anticipation of growth. It will be equipped to handle both electric and possibly self-driving buses. In addition to buses much larger than the ones the current terminal was built to handle. In order to avoid bottlenecks and choke points, the ramps leading to the facility will be wide enough to drive around the bus if it breaks down.

„The plan should be our ultimate goal, this is our ultimate goal and this is exactly what this area of ​​the city needs, and this is what the region needs,“ said Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority, during a presentation on Thursday.

Hear Stephen Nissen’s report on WNYC:

Cotton said after extensive input from the public and community meetings that the agency decided not to acquire any more land than the Port Authority actually owned. Another important request from community members was to take NJ Transit buses off the city streets, as well as interstate buses such as Bolt and Megagbus. Therefore, plans for the new station include ramps that connect directly to the Lincoln Tunnel, rather than turning through the streets. And a separate wing for the terminal for those interstate buses.

Currently, the Port Authority plans to build this facility first, diverting the buses that are there when the old terminal is torn down and the new terminal built.

„I think it’s a good plan,“ Gilles Brewer, president of Manhattan Borough, told the Gothamist. „After a really bad start seven years ago when the Port Authority said they wanted to demolish Hell’s Kitchen. This is all over, they’ve been listening intently to the community and they’ve come a long way from their original proposal, which says a lot.“

The project would have to undergo a federal environmental review, which would have taken two years under the Trump administration, or it would have died at that point. But it is unclear how long it would take under the Biden administration. The project will then undergo a ULURP process in the city before construction begins.

Current station Opened in 1950 It underwent many improvements over the years, but – before the pandemic – it was unable to handle volume, with 186 gates, 20 bus lines, 17 public toilets and 260,000 commuters a day. Over the years, the port has put $ 100 million in renovations, including New bathroomsLED lamps will replace 60-70% of the ceiling.

John Oliver called it „The single worst place on planet Earth.“ And passengers Tell Jim O’Grady of WNYC „If Hell was in Hell, it would be.“

„This is a vital link to New York City, and the bus is one of the most flexible means of commuting, unlike a fixed rail that can adapt to new developments,“ said Mitchell Moss, director of the NYU Rodin Center for Transportation. Gothamist. „This is a smart and vital project for the future of the city and the region.“

The Port Authority hopes that the new terminal will open by 2031.