PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Christine Berthet, Co-chair of Transportation Planning Committee at Manhattan Community Board 4
1:42:39
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129 sec
Christine Berthet, representing Manhattan Community Board 4, acknowledges the Port Authority's exceptional partnership but expresses concerns about the 10-year construction phase of the bus terminal project. She highlights the potential negative impacts on the community and calls for mitigation measures.
- Emphasizes the extensive disruption to the neighborhood, affecting 4 avenues and 10 streets
- Warns of massive traffic disruptions, street closures, and conflicts with existing Lincoln Tunnel traffic
- Requests green space at the beginning of the project and commitment to funding before council approval
- Notes that the district already has the 3rd worst air quality in the city
Christine Berthet
1:42:39
Still on?
1:42:39
Yes.
1:42:41
Thank you so much.
1:42:42
My name is Christine Berthe.
1:42:43
I am the co chair of Transportation Planning Committee of Manhattan CB 4.
1:42:48
Thank you for the opportunity to speak.
1:42:50
And first, I want to recognize that the Port Authority team has been an exceptional partner to date.
1:42:56
They have gone way beyond the call of duty to communicate and to solicit input from the community, and they have been very responsive to it.
1:43:05
So this is this has just been just an extraordinary partnership.
1:43:10
But as the port admits earlier, the construction phase is going to be very, very taxing on our residents.
1:43:18
It will last 10 years.
1:43:19
It will affect 4 avenues and probably 10 streets, and it's not your usual real estate project.
1:43:26
It's going to be the whole neighborhood is going to be a construction zone.
1:43:32
The traffic disruption will be massive with streets closure, with many, many bus gates on the streets, 250,000 commuters on the sidewalk to reach the subway.
1:43:44
All of this conflicting with daily chaos of the Lincoln Tunnel traffic, which is already existing today.
1:43:51
So I don't think anybody can anticipate how bad it's going to be, and we're going to be ready to take take it in and be flexible with it.
1:44:02
But our residential community cannot be made to suffer from more traffic, gridlock, honking, related idling, and worsening air quality.
1:44:10
Our district has the 3rd worst air quality in the city.
1:44:15
So this solution exists, but it seems that the port is not ready to spend a very small 0.5% of their budget on those mitigation.
1:44:30
And the port should provide relief to the community with some green space at the beginning of the project after the pilot, which has been discussed, which would be about 1 year from now, and commit to its funding before the council approve the project.
1:44:46
Thank you.
