Breaking Ground

 

 NY Post

As New York City sinks under the mass of its own weight, some hotspots are sinking faster than others, including LaGuardia Airport, Arthur Ashe Stadium and Coney Island, according to a new NASA report.

Researchers with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Rutgers University identified several key locations within the five boroughs that are sinking faster than the average 1.6 millimeters per year experienced by the rest of New York City.

LaGuardia’s runways and Arthur Ashe Stadium – home of the US Open – both saw the most rapid sinking from 2016 to 2023, falling at 3.7 and 4.6 millimeters per year, respectively, researchers published Wednesday in Science Advances.

Scientists warned that while the city’s sinking might seem slow, the addition of rising sea levels could prove disastrous during powerful storms like Sandy. 

“Protecting coastal populations and assets from coastal flooding is an ongoing challenge for New York City,” the researchers wrote. “The combined effect of natural sea level variations and destructive storms is being increasingly exacerbated by ongoing sea level rise.”

Along with LaGuardia and Arthur Ashe, the study found that Interstate 78, which passes through the Holland Tunnel that connects Manhattan to New Jersey, was also sinking at nearly double the rate of the rest of the city.

The same was true for Highway 440, which connects Staten Island to the Garden State.

Other areas sinking faster include Coney Island, the southern half of Governors Island, Midland and South Beach in Staten Island, and Arverne by the Sea, a coastal neighborhood in southern Queens.

LaGuardia air train derails

 

NY Post 

Gov. Kathy Hochul has told the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to find an alternative to disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s $2.1 billion “AirTrain” pet project between LaGuardia Airport and eastern Queens.

“I have asked the Port Authority to thoroughly examine alternative mass transit solutions for reducing car traffic and increasing connectivity to LaGuardia Airport,” Hochul said in a statement Monday afternoon — hours before elected officials representing the impacted section of Queens were set to hold a press conference against the boondoggle.

“We must ensure that our transportation projects are bold, visionary, and serve the needs of New Yorkers,” Hochul said. “I remain committed to working expeditiously to rebuild our infrastructure for the 21st century and to create jobs – not just at LaGuardia, but at all of our airports and transit hubs across New York.”

“I don’t feel obligated to accept what I have inherited,” Hochul added later Monday at a press conference in Brooklyn. “There were alternatives on the table that even the FAA said that people were saying people were not looking at as close as they should.”

Cuomo's inconvenient LGA choo choo has been approved

  

Gothamist

 After years of discussions, a new—and controversial—$2.1 billion AirTrain will be built, connecting LaGuardia Airport with the LIRR and 7 train stations at Mets-Willets Point in eastern Queens.

The Federal Aviation Association approved the plan on Tuesday, giving the Port Authority permission to "proceed with its proposal to construct a rail system to provide a reliable transit option for air travelers and employees at LGA." The FAA also noted it held two virtual public workshops and three virtual public hearings last September, and that 18 "different federal, state and local agencies have provided input throughout the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process based on their expertise and authorities." (You can see the Final EIS here.)

Governor Andrew Cuomo called the plan a "reliable, efficient, and affordable transit connector worthy of its destination." He noted that years of work has led to this moment and that now, "as we come out of the COVID crisis, our state and our country have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invest in a resilient, transformative, and interconnected future, and today's announcement is a testament to our 'all aboard' commitment to seizing it, in partnership with the Biden administration and Secretary Buttigieg."

While a mass transit option to LaGuardia has long been a goal, critics questioned Cuomo's particular plan because it actually takes travelers past the airport. In 2015, The Transport Politic created a map showing the routes of various connector plans and suggested that travel times actually increased with this plan.

FAA gives approval for LaGuardia Air Train construction to commence

 

Queens Chronicle

An environmental study released Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration appears to have cleared the way for construction of an AirTrain route to and from LaGuardia Airport.

In signing the document approved, David Fish, director of the Office of Airports for the FAA’s Eastern Region, wrote that “after careful and thorough consideration of the facts contained herein ... [I find] that the proposed Federal action is consistent with existing national environmental policies and objectives ... of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.”

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is seeking to build the link between LaGuardia and the Mets-Willets Point stop on the No. 7 subway line, needs FAA approval in order to access federal airport improvement funds.

The agency, with Gov. Cuomo’s backing, says the project is needed to decrease travel time between LaGuardia and Midtown and Downtown Manhattan.

Residents in and around East Elmhurst and environmental organizations have opposed the plan, which would construct the elevated rail along the Flushing Promenade.

Their objections include loss of parkland, the impact of noise, vibrations and traffic during construction, and the visual impact of a raised structure along the Promenade and Flushing Bay.

The FAA is expected to issue its final record of decision in 30 days. If approved, major construction is expected to begin in March 2022, with limited work beginning as early as this June. It is estimated that the system would be fully operational by December 2025.

The entire 628-page report, including a 46-page executive summary, can be read or downloaded online at lgaaccesseis.com.

Cuomo keeps LGA air train plan alive while the city trains don't run on time

 

NY Post

 Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday refused to back down from his $2 billion plans for an AirTrain to LaGuardia Airport — even while admitting the Big Apple’s transit system is facing an unprecedented financial crisis.

Cuomo insisted that the widely panned scheme was still “essential” for New York City, even as the Port Authority was forced to ax jobs and freeze other investments amid a coronavirus-induced downturn in travelers.

“It’ll be the single greatest economic boost that has been done in generations,” the governor insisted at a press briefing Sunday as he was challenged about sticking with the expensive project despite the cash crunch.

Governor Cuomo's LaGuardia choo choo is getting expensive and ultimately useless.

NY Post


It’s off the rails.

The cost of the controversial LaGuardia Airport AirTrain project — which was originally priced at $450 million, then at $1.5 billion — is now estimated to be roughly $2 billion, Port Authority officials revealed Tuesday.
Officials insisted the 1.5-mile-long project will pay for itself — even as they simultaneously announced plans to increase fees on bridges, tunnels, railways and airport facilities.
But critics have panned the proposed service for its bizarre route, which goes past Citi Field instead of into Manhattan. And many travelers say they have no plans to use it.
“People like the privacy, the independence of being in their own cars,” said one commuter at the airport Tuesday.
“I’ll stick with my SUV. It’s worth it.”
In 2015, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo first proposed the route, his office said the AirTrain would cost just $450 million, but the authority said in 2017 that it would actually be $1.5 billion.
The latest estimate of $2.05 billion — which officials say reflects the going rate for new AirTrains — comes out to nearly $800,000 per yard.
The governor argues the AirTrain will provide traffic relief at the Queens airport, which is currently only accessibly by car, bus or foot.
Nearly 90% of travelers currently arrive by car compared to just 6% by public transit, according to Port Authority data.

But while half of LaGuardia travelers are Manhattan-bound, the train’s proposed route will carry travelers east to Willets Point — away from Manhattan — from where they will need to take the Long Island Rail Road or subway into the city.