Updated: Sep. 16, 2022, 5:56 a.m. Published: Sep. 15, 2022, 4:58 p.m.
By Erik Bascome | tbascome@siadvance.com
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — For nearly 100 years, Staten Islanders have driven over the Outerbridge Crossing, but if the borough’s elected officials get their way, residents could be driving under it in the years to come.
On Wednesday, a group of Staten Island elected officials, led by Councilman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore), penned a letter to Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton, urging the agency to consider an underwater tunnel connecting the South Shore of Staten Island to Perth Amboy, N.J.
Earlier this year, the Port Authority announced it will begin a more thorough examination of potential options for widening or replacing the Outerbridge Crossing, which first opened in 1928, building on the results of a preliminary feasibility study that was completed in 2020.
“A vehicular tunnel between Perth Amboy and Staten Island would obviate any need to acquire properties to widen the Outerbridge Crossing, provide contiguous access to the Arthur Kill waterfront in perpetuity, while still advancing the important goal of improving regional transportation,” according to the letter.
The elected officials noted that constructing a tunnel would have a minimal impact on traffic flow, as the existing bridge can continue to operate throughout the process, generating toll revenue to help offset the increased project costs.
“While replacing the Outerbridge with an underwater tunnel would increase the price tag of this project significantly, it is important to consider both the immense benefit of doing so and the potential cost of missing out on any future economic opportunities, especially given the interest of maritime industries in development along the Arthur Kill,” the elected officials wrote. “At the very least, a tunnel is worth studying.”
The letter was also signed by: Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/South Brooklyn); Borough President Vito Fossella; State Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island); State Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island/Brooklyn); Councilman David Carr (R-Mid-Island); Assemblyman Michael Reilly (R-South Shore), and Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R-East Shore/South Brooklyn).
The Outerbridge Crossing, the only Staten Island-connected Port Authority bridge yet to be modernized, still features just four, narrow 10-foot lanes and is often subject to heavy traffic, particularly during the summer months as Staten Islanders make regular weekend trips to and from the Jersey Shore.
The continuance of the Port Authority’s preliminary feasibility study comes following legislation signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in December, which directed the Port Authority to assess the alignment and surrounding property of the Outerbridge Crossing to determine the feasibility of widening the span in an effort to increase traffic flow at the oft-congested crossing.
“As it is currently built, the Outerbridge Crossing’s narrow lanes and inadequate traffic flow are a frequent commuter headache. With this legislation we hope to expedite the process of dramatically improving quality of life and enhancing safety for commuters from New York and New Jersey alike,” the governor said at the time.
In April 2016, former Assemblyman Ron Castorina Jr. led other elected officials in calling on the Port Authority to begin the environmental impact statement process for a new bridge.
Then, in March 2017, the Port Authority took its first steps toward a potential replacement of the Outerbridge Crossing, announcing that the agency would perform a “comprehensive condition assessment and asset management study” on the span, as well as a “long-term demand forecast” for Staten Island bridges.
In April 2018, the agency approved a $9.2 million planning authorization, which resulted in a detailed condition assessment, a life cost analysis and a traffic demand analysis for the bridge.
Now, as part of the ongoing study, the Port Authority is examining the alignment of the bridge and determining which nearby private properties would have to be acquired in order to complete a potential expansion.
Once the study has been completed, the Port Authority will issue a report to the governors of New York and New Jersey, as well as the leaders of the New York State Senate and Assembly.
A representative for the Port Authority declined to comment on the letter or the possibility of replacing the Outerbridge Crossing with an underwater tunnel, simply stating that the agency will review the correspondence and respond to the elected officials directly.
Modernizing the Outerbridge Crossing has long been a priority for many Staten Island elected officials, including Malliotakis, who said in February that the new federal infrastructure bill provides a unique opportunity to fund such a project.
“The bipartisan infrastructure bill that we passed in November provides a rare opportunity to fund the widening or replacement of the Outerbridge Crossing,” the congresswoman said. “I am happy to work with Representative Pallone of New Jersey to advocate for the necessary improvements to this 100-year-old bridge in a bi-partisan and bi-state manner to increase motor vehicle capacity and reduce traffic congestion.”
Fossella and Borelli have also been pushing for an Outerbridge Crossing modernization project, with the two urging the Port Authority in October 2021 to use funds that had been previously earmarked for the LaGuardia air train project to accelerate the timeline for a replacement.
“Councilmember Borelli and I called for replacing the Outerbridge Crossing last year, because we believe the bridge is unsafe, outdated and is unable to handle the large volume of traffic. We share the frustrations of all Staten Islanders who spend hours in congestion when traveling,” Fossella told the Advance/SILive.com in February.
OTHER PORT AUTHORITY BRIDGES
In recent years, the Port Authority has completed similar projects to widen and modernize the agency’s other two Staten Island bridges, the Goethals Bridge and the Bayonne Bridge.
Both new bridges were reconstructed with wider, 12-foot travel lanes, as well as inside and outside shoulders, in order to increase vehicle capacity, subsequently improving traffic flow and reducing congestion on the heavily-trafficked crossings.
Click the following links to learn more about the recent modernization projects on the Goethals Bridge and the Bayonne Bridge.