by: Jessica Sheridan Assoc. AIA LEED AP
Last week, Mayor Bloomberg announced the list of federal stimulus transportation projects for the five boroughs. $261 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will fund city projects, according to the Office of the Mayor. What is so disappointing to me is that, while the list incorporates much needed road and bridge improvements, as well as increased pedestrian accessibility, hardly any of the projects include mass transportation development.
For pedestrians, retail space will be added to St. George Ferry Terminal; a greenway at Hunts Point will be developed; Long Island City Queens Plaza will be converted into a major boulevard with new sidewalks and landscaping; West 125th Street in Manhattan will be reconstructed; and crumbling portions of the Coney Island and Rockaway Boardwalks will be rebuilt. For cars, ramps will be improved at the St. George Ferry Terminal and the Brooklyn Bridge; the Brooklyn Navy Yard’s roadways and water and sewer systems will be upgraded; and numerous bridges will be rehabilitated. The full list of projects is available online.
As far as mass transit is concerned, the only funding I see is for access to the number 6 train entrance at Hugh Grant Circle in Parkchester, and part of the Brooklyn Navy Yard improvement includes better access to the A/C/F trains. With major subway fare increases looming in June, I wonder how come more funding was not filtered into the MTA? Nationally, it is estimated that $27.5 billion will be allocated for the Surface Transportation Program, $8.4 billion will be designated for public transportation, and $9.3 billion will be for intercity and high-speed rail (See “Mass Transit and the Stimulus,” by Katherine Bagley, Columbia Journalism Review, 03.03.09). With these figures, mass transit consists of about $10 billion less in funding than roads and bridges, if the latter two estimates are combined, or 39% of the total transportation funding. While I think the percentages should be flipped nationwide, NYC should at least follow suit and divvy out funding similarly.