An Uneasy Bi-State Truce Moves Manhattan Bus Station Ahead
- NJ and NY governors commit billions to replace midtown eyesore
- ‘Single worst place on planet Earth’ serves 115,000 commuters
Commuters board a bus at the Port Authority Bus Terminal during rush hour in New York on Dec. 12, 2014.
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey officials and governors of the two states for the first time have agreed on a plan to replace its rundown, overcrowded commuter bus terminal near Times Square, pledging a down payment of $3.5 billion, about one-third of the project’s ultimate cost by its completion date, now planned for 2026.
The deal was reflected in the agency’s proposed 2017 10-year, $30 billion capital plan reviewed at a board meeting Thursday after months of rancor between New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who has balked at financing a facility he sees as mainly benefiting New Jersey, and Port Authority Chairman John Degnan, an appointee of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Even so, disputes among agency commissioners over other items have delayed ratification, pending a still unscheduled meeting in the next few weeks.