STATEN ISLAND — Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Gov. Chris Chrisite on Wednesday directed the Port Authority to upgrade three bridges that connect Staten Island to New Jersey.
The PA will fund projects that will completely replace the Goethals Bridge, raise the roadway of the Bayonne Bridge, and resurface the Outerbridge Crossing.
Work on the projects are expected to start this year and should be completed by 2017, a release by Cuomo and Christie said.
Plans for the new Goethals Bridge include larger roadways for cars, a pathway for bicycles and pedestrians, and the design will allow mass transit options in the future.
The new bridge will be built with a public-private partnership with the states, and both governors lauded the economic boom from these projects.
“Employing a public-private partnership to build a new Goethals Bridge and utilizing unique engineering strategies to raise the roadway of the Bayonne Bridge demonstrate our ability to build major transportation infrastructure in a smart and cost effective manner,” Cuomo said in a release. “This action will create thousands of jobs and serve as a major economic boost for New York and New Jersey.”
The projects would create more than 5,000 jobs, generate more than $600 million in wages and over $2.5 billion in other activity, the release said.
The new roadway for the Bayonne Bridge will allow more container ships to pass under the bridge, and also widen the lanes and shoulders, create a 12-foot bicycle and pedestrian path, and will be able to include public transportation options in the future, the release said.
The current roadway should be removed by 2015, the release said.
