New York City Transit Improvements - A New Tappan Zee

[Severiano]

6.4 billion? Didn't the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, the worlds longest suspension bridge and in an earthquake zone cost 5 bil?

[mrmocha413]

BRT?! you've got a Metro-North Connection right on the Westchester County shore of the Hudson! Swing the Metro-North Suffern Line over the bridge n connect it to the Harlem Line, what nonsense BRT would be!

The current span should be refurbished (later down the road to increase capacity) after a new span is built and operational.

$6.7 Billion hmm? lets not forget at least a third of that price tag is going to be robbed through corruption from politicians to advocates to contractors involved in the project! Then the number is going to climb even further!

[Gaeus]

$6.7 Billion dollars for that? Disney just bought Marvel and its more than 5,000 characters (Spiderman, Fantastic Four,X-Men,etc.) for $4 billions. That's $2.7 billion cheaper. So why so expensive?

[alznto]

I don't know exactly why the price tag for this bridge is so high, but I got the impression from local news that the number is a lump sum that not only pays for the bridge, but also builds an extension onto metro north connecting Suffern and Tarrytown and also adds bus lanes that will connect cities on both sides of the river.

Lanes cannot be added to the bridge at this point. It's in really rough shape. It was built in the 1950's as a temporary measure. The bridge was only meant to last around 50 years. In addition, it was never meant to carry the amount of weight it is now. Repair work is constant and there is at least some concern that it might end up the same way the Minneapolis bridge did, if it is not replaced soon.

[hkskyline]

State finds no ecology obstacles to new NY bridge
Environmental impact of new suburban bridge in NY would be minor on Hudson, state finds
Associated Press
Wed, Jan 25, 2012 10:53 AM EST

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) -- A new Tappan Zee Bridge would do no lasting harm to the water quality of the Hudson River and might even improve air quality in the area, a state analysis says.

However, nine homeowners in South Nyack, including two in a historic district, would lose their property, the study says. Some residents of Nyack would have their majestic river views obstructed.

New York's draft environmental impact statement was made public Tuesday, part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's speeded-up effort to get construction started this year on the new span. The governor's office said Tuesday the project is expected to create more than 23,000 jobs.

In October, President Barack Obama declared the bridge eligible for fast-tracked federal approvals. Though the project has been discussed for a decade, this is the first time it has gotten to the environmental impact statement stage.

"Now that we understand the environmental effects of reconstructing the bridge, it is time to start laying out real construction plans," said state Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald.

The new Tappan Zee would be two spans replacing an aging, overcrowded bridge across the Hudson between Westchester and Rockland counties in New York City's suburbs.

However, there is no plan to include mass transit on the bridge from the start, as had been discussed for years and as many local leaders have suggested. Mass transit could add billions to the projected $5.2 billion cost, but advocates say the bridge quickly will be obsolete without it. Present plans leave room for the possible later addition of mass transit.

Paul Gallay, president of the environmental group Riverkeeper, wondered why there was no study for a mass transit alternative.

"Have they just settled on this two-span bridge with no mass transit as the thing they must do?" he said.

Comments on the draft environmental impact will be accepted until March 15, and public hearings will be held in Westchester and Rockland Counties in late February. A final statement is expected by July and a federal decision finalizing it by August. Construction could then begin, if funding is in place.

The impact statement, assembled by transportation officials, finds that a new bridge would not by itself increase traffic, although it would have eight lanes rather than the current bridge's seven lanes.

Some proponents of immediate mass transit say that if the bridge is an improvement, it will draw more cars.

The draft says that because of plans for stormwater management, there will be no increase in Hudson River pollution from the bridge, once it's completed. During construction, however, dredging, pile-driving and demolition of the existing bridge could affect water quality.

It says air quality could improve because of less traffic congestion.

As for wildlife, the report says the project would have little effect on most creatures in the water, on the land or in the air.

"Any species currently inhabiting the area would continue to occur with the same likelihood," it says. It says oyster beds in the river could be permanently lost during construction but "restoration projects will be explored."

The endangered peregrine falcons now living on the bridge are expected to move to nest boxes on the new bridge, the report said.

Eminent domain would be used to buy the homes that would be in the new right of way in Rockland County, it said.

___

Online:

Environmental impact statement, http://bit.ly/wru2us

[eltodesukane]

Originally Posted by alznto

I don't know exactly why the price tag for this bridge is so high, but I got the impression from local news that the number is a lump sum that not only pays for the bridge, but also builds an extension onto metro north connecting Suffern and Tarrytown and also adds bus lanes that will connect cities on both sides of the river.

Lanes cannot be added to the bridge at this point. It's in really rough shape. It was built in the 1950's as a temporary measure. The bridge was only meant to last around 50 years. In addition, it was never meant to carry the amount of weight it is now. Repair work is constant and there is at least some concern that it might end up the same way the Minneapolis bridge did, if it is not replaced soon.

Tappan Zee bridge is almost identical to the Champlain bridge over the St Lawrence River (between Montreal and Brossard, Canada). There too, repair work is constant, and it needs to be replaced as soon as possible.

[yankeesfan1000]

Obama mentioned this project as a vital infrastructure project, and there's no reason LaHood would oppose it, so this should get federal support. It's unfortunate that the current plan doesn't include potential for rail, but this bridge is in unbelievably horrendous condition and needs to replaced asap.

As Cuomo Wins Support for Bridge With No Dedicated Transit Lanes, Funding Request Barrels Forward
By Jim O'Grady | 08/21/2012 – 6:29 am



"It’s going to take at $5.4 billion to build a new Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River north of New York City. Governor Andrew Cuomo gave the project a big push Monday by sending a letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, asking for a $2 billion loan. Cuomo inked the request in front of a small crowd at a marina in the riverside town of Piermont, NY, that he might flourish his pen with the beleaguered Tappan Zee Bridge in the background...

...It took Cuomo many months to get to the moment. Key members of the The New York Metropolitan Transportation Council, whose approval was needed before the loan could be requested, balked at a plan for the bridge that included no provision for a mass transit operation beyond a bus: options such as rail, light rail or a Bus Rapid Transit system linking to transportation hubs on either side of the Hudson. Cuomo won the votes of those officials by agreeing to form a task force to examine the issue and come up with recommendations..."

[Hudson11]

They released three finalists, this is the most likely to be chosen (the cheapest at around $3.2 billion)



Both renderings taken from transportation nation.org

3 finalists :

[aquablue]

It's the cheapest design, but more interesting than the second design which is the usual suspension bridge type.