Posted on 10/12/2011 5:18:27 PM PDT by decimon
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) — The cost of a new Tappan Zee Bridge in the New York City suburbs has been shaved to $5.2 billion by focusing solely on the bridge, a federal agency said Tuesday.
In the past, mass transit components, ranging up to a new commuter rail line, were considered key elements of a new span over the Hudson River.
President Barack Obama chose the project Monday for quick federal approval of environmental and other permits, and the Federal Highway Administration said those could be obtained within a year. Construction, creating thousands of jobs, could begin soon afterward, it said.
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In 2008, several designs for a new bridge were unveiled, with costs estimated at the time at $9 billion to $16 billion depending on which mass transit options were included. The possibilities ranged from upgraded bus service to light rail to an east-west commuter rail line that would link several existing north-south routes.
The FHA said the cost could have exceeded $21 billion.
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(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Up the river ping.
How corrupt. They could include a single-track rail connector on the bridge for that $5.2 billion, too, if not for their corruption. (They wouldn’t have to pay NJ Transit any more for running to Port Jervis, then, and the trains could go right to Grand Central. But who wants to save the taxpayer any money, eh?)
Anyone happen to know the original estimates for the Boston Big Dig vs final cost ?
Double it. You makka me laff.
We should start an over under pool.
I’m in for greater than 25 billion Mr. Barker.
Originally 2.8 bil final cost 22 bil with interest, or 14.6 at time of completion.
Exactly. And the longer they wait, the more it will cost. However, the Tappan Zee would be a top candidate on my list for replacement. I used to love it as a kid, heading up to New england for visits..but I’m cautious now...and take a longer way around. And I wouldn’t necessarily want to see the job go to the lowest bidder.
A commuter rail connector is a good idea, but what they really need is a freight rail connector permitting CSX to link their West Hudson and East Hudson divisions via Metro North. With the old Poughkeepsie rail bridge usable only as a hiking trail, this would permit the two divisions to communicate with each other south of the Selkirk bridge. CSX would pay for their share of the link, and that would lower the cost of the rail component of the bridge.
Not so fast when it comes to oil drilling though is it? Like...never!
How much would it be with Chinese steel? You know the kind that’s mixed with sand for a filler.
This bridge is a toll bridge. So why is the government looking about replacing it.
Alas for the Poughkeepsie Bridge. Another victim of Conrail neglect (federal government). Of course, the federal government since the end of WWII regulated away the competitiveness of the railroads . . . and the Staggers Act helped some, but not enough to fend off the newer regulations that are imposed every time there's the slightest hint of a rail accident.
A commuter rail connector is a good idea, but what they really need is a freight rail connector permitting CSX to link their West Hudson and East Hudson divisions via Metro North. With the old Poughkeepsie rail bridge usable only as a hiking trail, this would permit the two divisions to communicate with each other south of the Selkirk bridge. CSX would pay for their share of the link, and that would lower the cost of the rail component of the bridge
Of course, we will be living in an un-inhabitable jungle by then, but the plan will have succeeded. Very clever.
The idea of bringing Norfolk Southern’s ex-Erie into the game would create another partner that would further lower the cost of the bridge. This would provide a link to the NS/Pan American partnership in northern Massachusetts via trackage rights on CSX on either side of the Hudson. It would kill a whole flock of birds with one stone.
The biggest obstacles for CSX east of the Hudson River are the passenger service conflicts along the Metro-North route and the height and weight limits along the passenger lines in New York City. I don’t think that’s an issue that will ever be adequately addressed unless someone is willing to erase the map and start all over again.
A Bridge That Has Nowhere Left to Go (NY’s Tappan Zee Bridge)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1560062/posts
The partying section is bigger than the two-bay truck house.
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