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West Midtown Ferry Terminal
Growing Ridership Spurs
Demand for New Terminal
by Lynne Viccaro O'Leary
To help ease the city's transportation burden, the New York
City Economic Development Corp. and NYC Department of Transportation
are encouraging commuters and visitors to head for the water.
As a result, a new, $40 million West Midtown Ferry Terminal
at West 39th Street at Pier 79 is being built to accommodate
ever-increasing ferry ridership.
The construction, which began in January, is scheduled to
be complete by the end of this year.
The project consists of a 40-year-old pier that extends 100
ft. into the Hudson River and surrounds the ventilation towers
of the Lincoln Tunnel. A new terminal building will be constructed,
accompanied by landscaped public spaces and six ferry slips
that will be operated by NY Waterway. The slips will be open
to private ferry services, as well.
The new Pier 79 Terminal will be a city-owned facility providing
ferry service to accommodate up to 20,000 short-haul commuters
from midtown Manhattan to points along the Hudson River. The
project will also include a passenger waiting area, retail,
administrative offices, landscaping and bus and taxi dropoff
areas.
The structural steel assembly was essentially complete in
March, and demolition of the steel shed that houses shuttle
buses was under way, said Marty Hirko, assistant vice president
and project executive for Skanska USA, construction manager
for the terminal.
Construction of the glass curtain wall enclosure was about
to begin, as well as the ductwork and major utilities, Hirko
added.
The proximity of the project to the Lincoln Tunnel, the Hudson
River and the West Side Highway did present some problems,
he added.
Maintaining site logistics to avoid interference and/or interruption
of the existing ferry service and dealing with a confined
site bordered by the Hudson River on one side, an active pedestrian/bike
path on the opposite and ventilation shafts for the Lincoln
Tunnel in the center "has kept us on our toes,"
Hirko said. "That doesn't include the fact that most
of the structural steel work was completed during below-freezing
temperatures with winds blowing and ice floes floating down
the Hudson."
Another concern has been the project's vulnerability to terrorism.
To address this, the terminal has been designed to withstand
extreme pressure and vibration.
The glass pavilion, provided by W&W Glass Systems of
Nyack, N.Y., was put through rigorous independent laboratory
tests for weather resistance, structural performance at design
loading, seismic resistance and structural redundancy.
The glass pavilion passed each of the tests, including a
rigorous overload test that
utilized a pressurized chamber to apply a series of loads
to the glass.
"The ferry terminal has been designed to be both architecturally
pleasing and structurally sound," Hirko said.
Safety, functionality and aesthetics all play a role in this
project because of the growing popularity of ferry ridership,
said Janel Patterson, an EDC spokesperson.
"Ferry ridership has been increasing since the 1980s
and has really been on the rise since Sept. 11," she
added. "Currently, NY Waterway is at capacity. The six
slips will be available for all ferry operators to encourage
competition. We would also like to encourage more visitors
to Midtown on the weekends."
New York City is so committed to expanding it ferry transport
system that there are plans to renovate and construct five
ferry landings along the East Side from Wall Street up to
94 Street.
"The East River Ferry landings will consist of new or
renovated locations at Battery Park, East 34th Street, East
62nd Street, East 76th Street and East 90th Street,"
Patterson said. "It will take 20 minutes to go from downtown
to 90th Street by ferry."
Construction is slated to begin in May and be completed by
summer 2005.
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