Streetsblog New York City

NYC DOT is proposing to turn Manhattan's 34th Street into a river-to-river "transitway."

In what she half-jokingly called "probably the first-ever co-presentation" between their two agencies, Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan stood with New York City Transit President Howard Roberts earlier this week to unveil the city's current Bus Rapid Transit program in its entirety -- including a plan that would "redefine the public realm" on Manhattan's 34th St. by redesigning it as the city's first "transitway."

At a forum co-hosted by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, Transportation Alternatives, the Pratt Center for Community Development and the Straphangers Campaign, over 100 people gathered at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx Tuesday morning, just a few blocks from where the city is poised to launch its first BRT project on Fordham Road, to hear international experts explain how other programs work, and don't work, around the world. Walter Hook, executive director of New York's Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, profiled elements of BRT models in cities like Jakarta, Indonesia and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where his organization has served a consultatory role. Oscar Edmundo Diaz, also with ITDP and once a senior advisor to former Bogotá Mayor Enrique Peñalosa, detailed the workings of the wildly successful TransMilenio, which Hook described as state-of-the-art in Bus Rapid Transit.

Outlining New York's plans, Sadik-Khan previewed big changes for some of the city's major corridors.

When NYC Transit President Howard Roberts announced Monday -- to some ridicule -- that certain subway lines are overcrowded with little to no relief in sight, it was reported that the system would not be able to handle the influx of commuters who are expected to switch to transit should congestion pricing be implemented.

Considering the consistency of the articles, it seems less likely that the newspapers -- which by and large support pricing -- spun Roberts' remarks and more likely that the transit chief, let's say, gave the wrong impression. After all, congestion pricing would be a boon to the MTA, providing funds to upgrade subway lines, extend bus service on overtaxed or underserved routes, and improve bus rapid transit and ferry service -- and much of this in advance of pricing, thanks to an expected $500 million federal allocation. Also, even if 10 percent of Manhattan-bound drivers make the mode shift (an estimate considered to be on the high end), it would equate to a mere 2 percent jump in transit ridership, spread across subway and bus lines throughout the boroughs.

When his warnings were interpreted as a knock at pricing, Roberts summoned reporters back to his office.

Metro reports:

Amid all the bad news, the president of NYC Transit feared an underlying message had been lost about the benefits of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s proposed congestion pricing plan.

 
During rush hours, the busiest train lines -- including the 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and E -- are running at or over capacity. Yet Roberts insisted the system could still “fully support” the increased ridership projected from congestion pricing. “In fact the current strain on parts of the system is a big argument in favor of congestion pricing, not against it,” he said.

Roberts believes the business-day toll could pay for subway improvements and for such big-ticket projects as the first leg of the Second Avenue Subway, which is already $1 billion short.

On Monday, Roberts proposed quick “fixes,” including adding more cars to trains and extending station platforms. But these remedies would take “four or five” years. More importantly, they all require money the MTA doesn’t have.

“Congestion pricing is critical to putting these fixes into place,” Roberts said yesterday.

Photo: Scott Beale/Laughing Squid