Eight days ago, I told you about plans to include space for transit on the new span set to replace the Goethals Bridge replacement. Yesterday, Mobilizing the Region presented background on the transit aspects of the plan and a fancy set of renderings for the project. While construction isn’t set to begin until 2011, we should still applaud the way the Port Authority’s thinking for the bridge evolved to include public transit lanes. If only we could retrofit some of the other, more lacking river crossings as well.
previous post
3 comments
Every once in a while I would read somewhere that the Bayonne Bridge has space for transit. An extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail into Staten Island can be added to it relatively easily. A new Goethals Bridge is sorely needed, of course, but if the PA was only thinking about expanding transit it should’ve looked at the Bayonne and HBLR first and foremost.
Perhaps physically easy, but not politically. HBLR is a NJTransit project, and would have to be transferred to the Port Authority in order for it to cross into NY. Considering the problems that the PA is having with the WTC site and lack of maintenance / expansion of the PATH system, I’m not sure we want to let them have more responsibility.
-Chris
A lack of interaction between the various transit agencies is absolutely the main reason, I agree. But NJ Transit is the most aggressive of the agencies in terms of continuing lines into other states. I can think of 3 connections to New York State and one to Pennsylvania. Why not one more? It was much more of a legislative hassle to approve an MTA bus to Bayonne (the S89) than it would be for NJ Transit to expand into Staten Island.