The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and elected officials from both states have agreed to an expanded planning process for a new Manhattan bus terminal.
The Port Authority announced Tuesday that the study will analyze potential temporary and additional bus facility sites while also determining how a new bus terminal should be integrated with current and future regional transportation assets. The agency's plan to choose a winning design for a new Port Authority Bus Terminal by this month was delayed as New York City officials expressed concerns about the transparency of the international design competition, which was held last October.
"The future planning for the project will include significant local stakeholder input into a comprehensive public engagement and planning process, which will fully examine the range of options for a new bus terminal," U.S. Rep. Jerold Nadler, D-Manhattan, said in a statement.
Congressman Nadler was among more than a dozen elected officials from New York City and New Jersey to support the Port Authority's new bus terminal process.
The Port Authority said in a statement that ideas and input from a panel review of five design competition concepts submitted Aug. 29 could be beneficial for the planning process. When authorizing the competition, the Port Authority's board of commissioners expressed support for a new facility west of the current terminal, while allowing design entrants to submit alternative locations. The current 1950-built bus terminal serves 232,000 passengers each weekday and Port Authority officials estimate this figure will jump to 337,000 by 2040.
The Port Authority is rated Aa3 by Moody's Investors Service and AA-minus by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings. The agency's current $3.7 billion capital budget includes spending on enhancements to the current bus terminal.
"We are pleased to see that the Port Authority has agreed to begin the kind of inclusive planning process for rebuilding the bus terminal that we have called for and applaud the efforts of elected officials and stakeholders from both sides of the Hudson that brought about this agreement," New York City First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris said in a statement. "As the Port Authority develops its plans for a robust public engagement process, New York City looks forward to being deeply engaged by the Port Authority in any further planning efforts around this essential trans-Hudson transportation project that is so vital to the region's economy."
