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PANYNJ receives full approval for its Midtown Bus Terminal replacement project

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PANYNJ receives full approval for its Midtown Bus Terminal replacement project

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) has received final and complete approval from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and New York City for its Midtown Bus Terminal replacement project. This project will work to replace outdated legacy infrastructure with an updated modern infrastructure to Improve commuter experience, reduce bus congestion on neighborhood streets and create new publicly accessible open space.  

Both the FTA and the city have conducted their own separate and thorough review of the proposed project. The FTA issued its Record of Decision following a federally mandated environmental review of the project and the signing in September of the project’s final environmental impact statement. The city of New York also fully approved the project following a unanimous 45-0 vote by city council in November. 

In July, the Port Authority Board of Commissioners also gave its approval for the first early works construction contracts. With all approvals complete, construction of the deck-overs above Dyer Avenue is slated to start early next year and the agency’s construction procurement for the rest of the project will advance.  

“The Midtown Bus Terminal is a crucial transportation hub for New York, servicing over 250,000 passenger trips on a busy weekday alone and we are committed to providing a world-class travel experience to and from Manhattan through this exciting transformation of the terminal,” said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. “New York is constantly innovating and advancing, and this project will help us meet our projected ridership growth while also reducing congestion on our streets and providing an improved travel experience for our commuters.” 

The new Midtown Bus Terminal will replace the existing 74-year-old, functionally obsolete and rundown terminal with a long-overdue world-class facility. Reliable and efficient bus service between New York and New Jersey is critical to the interconnected economies of both states, as hundreds of thousands of New Jersey residents work in New York City. The new terminal is designed to meet projected 2040-2050 commuter growth, provide a best-in-class customer experience that serves the region’s 21st century public transportation needs and enhance the surrounding community.  

 The $10 billion project will result in a facility that will include a new 2.1-million-square-foot main terminal, a separate storage and staging building and new ramps leading directly into and out of the Lincoln Tunnel. The project plan — including the permanent closure of a portion of 41st Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues, a central main entrance, more street-facing retail, a soaring multi-story indoor atrium and new public open space — will enhance both the commuter experience at the world’s busiest bus terminal and the community surrounding the facility.   

These plans reflect community feedback for the Midtown Bus Terminal replacement after PANYNJ’s  extensive community outreach, including input from New York City, commuters, local community boards and elected officials in both states.  

The project includes a wide array of community benefits, including:  

  • Added capacity to allow curbside inter-city buses that currently pick up and drop off on city streets surrounding the bus terminal to move their operations inside the bus terminal and off the streets. 
  • The new staging and storage facility will consolidate storage and staging functions in a single facility, minimizing bus idling and circulation around local city streets and reducing congestion in and out of the Lincoln Tunnel. 
  • The creation at the end of construction of 3.5 acres of publicly accessible green spaces on Port Authority property by building platforms spanning the currently below-grade Dyer Avenue “cut” and turning the open space on top of the new deck-overs into public green spaces. 
  • New concessions and retail amenities that will be accessible from the streets in the community as well as from inside the bus terminal. 

 

The new bus terminal will be built for the future and designed to be net-zero emissions, accommodating all-electric bus fleets and implementing new technology. The building will also include sustainability and resiliency measures, from LEED certification and clean construction to onsite renewable energy, zoned heating and cooling systems and heat recovery and reuse technology. The new ramp structure will provide a direct connection to the Lincoln Tunnel, with added queue space and bypass capability, thereby reducing bus circulation on local city streets. Community-friendly outward-facing local retail will benefit commuters and the community alike. 

Funding for the project is expected to include Port Authority capital funding for a significant portion of the cost, federal loans, development rights and PILOTs approved by the city for several potential new commercial developments, including above the new bus terminal. 

The project is expected to be constructed in phases, with a temporary terminal and new ramps completed in 2028 and the new main terminal completed in 2032.  

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