$1 billion is earmarked for rail tunnel to Manhattan
BY RON MARSICO STAR-LEDGER STAFF
A decades-old dream of digging a second rail tunnel under the Hudson River to Midtown Manhattan will gather momentum today when the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is expected to approve a $1 billion authorization for the megaproject.
Agency officials say the huge outlay is just a beginning Š by year's end they hope to designate another $1 billion to the tunnel as part of the agency's upcoming 10-year capital investment plan.
After years of visionary talk and little action, the Port Authority's anticipated $2 billion commitment represents a massive down payment on long-stalled plans to ease frustrations over rush-hour congestion delays by doubling capacity from the roughly 42,000 commuters each workday morning.
Agency officials hope their commitment ultimately will spur the federal government to fund at least half of the second trans-Hudson rail tunnel's estimated $6 billion price tag.
`By making this kind of commit ment now, we're sending a message to Washington that there are enormous local resources behind this project,’’ said Port Authority Chairman Anthony Coscia.
While long endorsed by mass transit advocates,the second rail tunnel idea has languished because of daunting costs, environmental hurdles and competing pet projects of local and regional officials. But a consensus has jelled in recent years over the critical need to move more people into and out of Midtown, amid growing fears that a failure to do so will damage the region’s future economic prospects.
The Port Authority has a longstanding tradition of financing major transportation and economic development projects through its large bonding capacity. A project such as the rail tunnel could be financed through bonds paid off over decades by general revenue and potential future bridge and tunnel vehicle toll hikes and PATH rail fare increases.
Gov. Jon Corzine, a long-standing supporter of the additional tunnel, wants construction to begin in 2009. Completion of the tunnel, which will run adjacent to the existing one, is not expected until 2016 — at the earliest.
Advocates view the new tunnel as this generation’s George Washington Bridge in terms of adding transportation capacity across the Hudson River — albeit one that will serve trains, not cars, and whose architectural wonders largely will be invisible.
Coscia predicted the new tunnel eventually will be ‘‘the foundation of a mass transportation system that does not rely on the automobile.’’
The existing century-old, twotrack tunnel from New Jersey to New York’s Penn Station is often overwhelmed by NJ Transit and Amtrak trains’ growing needs to enter and leave the city — particularly during the morning and evening workday crunch times. A new double-track tunnel is considered critical to meet ballooning NJ Transit ridership, which is expected to reach 100,000 rush-hour passengers by 2015.
NJ Transit’s riders bear the brunt of routine delays. Amtrak trains have priority because Amtrak owns and maintains the tracks and tunnel into and out of Midtown Manhattan.
‘‘Each wave of economic growth that took place in New York and New Jersey was based on previously installed infrastructure,’’ said James Hughes, dean of Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Policy.
‘‘This is something that benefits the entire Port Authority region, and that’s why the Port Authority was created,’’ continued Hughes. ‘‘Other states, other regions have made massive investments in their transportation infrastructure and they’re challenging us economically. This is a reflection of that new reality that we just can’t sit back and let the economy take care of itself.’’
Building the tunnel also will mean expansion of New York Penn Station under 34 th Street to help accommodate t h e additional trains.
The Port Authority’s announcement follows last week’s decision by the Federal Transit Administration to allow preliminary engineering work to begin on the tunnel. While the FTA’s approval likely means future federal funding, the agency has not yet provided any guarantees of help.
Corzine recently committed $500 million in state financing to the tunnel.
‘‘It’s been 50 years since the Port Authority undertook a major transportation project like the tunnel,’’ said Anthony Coley, the governor’s spokesman. ‘‘With this commitment, we will be positioned for a significant contribution’’ from the federal government.
Members of the Regional Plan Association view the Port Authority’s action as further proof of the bistate agency’s recommitment to building transportation projects.
The tunnel plan ‘‘represents the Port Authority stepping up again after being absent in many ways for a generation,’’ said Tom Wright, the association’s executive vice president, recalling the agency’s role in key projects like the George Washington Bridge and the Holland and Lincoln tunnels. ‘‘People understand the need for another generation of big-scale infrastructure.’’
Ron Marsico covers the Port Authority. He may be reached at
rmarsico@starledger.com or (973) 392-7860.