Testimony Before the New York City Council Supporting a New Port Authority Bus Terminal

November 12, 2024

Testimony Before the New York City Council: Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises

Re: Support for the Port Authority’s Midtown Bus Terminal Replacement Program

Good afternoon, Chair Riley and Council Members, and thank you for the opportunity to speak to the Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises. My name is Megan Wylie and I am the Director of Government Relations at the New York Building Congress.

The Building Congress comprises 500 constituent organizations representing 250,000 skilled tradespeople and professionals across the industry, all dedicated to the growth and prosperity of our city. We strongly express our support for the Port Authority’s Midtown Bus Terminal Replacement Program, a groundbreaking plan that will transform our city.

The current Port Authority Bus Terminal opened more than 70 years ago, on a West Side that no longer exists. The neighborhood and surrounding area has exploded and the terminal has reached the end of its useful, structural life – in addition to being the butt of countless jokes for far too long. Our new New York demands a modern terminal built for the future – state-of-the-art, sustainable, LEED certified, and future-proofed for projected commuter growth.

This proposal will not only beautify a current blight, it will also reduce congestion by removing curbside intercity and idling buses. The new ramp structure connecting to the Lincoln Tunnel will take buses off of local streets. And decking over Dyer Avenue will create 3.5 acres of community green space where once traffic was all anyone could see.

From the Building Congress’ perspective, the creation of 6,000 good-paying, union construction jobs over eight years and the hundreds of millions in contracting opportunities for MWBEs is a win-win. Finally, the most important factor in all of this is that Unlike many public projects of this size, the community and commuters were enlisted as partners in the planning – in fact it was approved unanimously by Community Board 4.

We urge you to support this bold initiative to reimagine mass transit in Manhattan. Let’s lead the way in community-driven, sustainably built, commuter-friendly mass transit infrastructure, and let’s start by approving a new Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Thank you for your consideration.