The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s plan to replace its Midtown Bus Terminal in New York City received a $1.89 billion boost on Jan. 15 as the U.S. Department of Transportation The United States announced that it would offer a Transportation Infrastructure Innovation and Financing Act loan to help. finance the first phase of the $10 billion project.
The project is needed because the bus terminal, which opened in 1950, is deteriorating, according to Port Authority and U.S. Department of Transportation officials. The planned terminal, which would be built on the same site, would allow for expanded capacity, modern bus fleets, improved operations and greater sustainability, according to the Port Authority.
“The approval of a federal TIFIA loan for this phase of our bus terminal replacement project further demonstrates the unprecedented public and government support at all levels for our plan to replace aging and outdated infrastructure with a new, state-of-the-art art facility located in the heart of Manhattan,” Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said in a statement.
The Port Authority says the Midtown Bus Terminal is the busiest bus terminal in the world, serving 250,000 passengers daily.
The first phase includes the construction of a bus storage facility and assembly facilities, which will be used as a temporary terminal during the construction of the new 2.1 million square meter main terminal, in addition to roofs covering below-grade sections of some nearby streets. The scope also includes building a ramp structure that accesses the Lincoln Tunnel, so buses can be pulled off city streets.
Construction of this first phase will begin this year, with the goal of completion in 2029. The Port Authority also aims to complete the main terminal by 2032.
Using funding from the TIFIA program will allow the Port Authority to take advantage of subsidized loan costs and favorable repayment terms, officials said.
“By using TIFIA and adopting innovative financing, the Port Authority will provide a state-of-the-art, reliable and efficient bus facility much sooner than it could otherwise,” he said Morteza Farajian, executive director of the US DOT’s Build America office, said in a statement.
Contractor AECOM Tishman also confirmed Jan. 14 that it was signed on as construction manager for the $271 million decks after Port Authority commissioners voted to authorize the contract last summer. Officials also selected Great Neck, New York-based MLJ Contracting to perform the work.
Eric Reid, chief operating officer of AECOM Tishman, in a statement called the terminal replacement a “once-in-a-generation project that will improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of travelers and improve the surrounding community.”
Federal Transit Administration officials signed off on the plan in December. The second and third phases of the work would cover the terminal itself and the development of two towers on 8th Avenue above the terminal with up to 5 million gross square meters of combined retail space, in addition to the conversion of the decks in public green spaces.
