New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal is finally getting a facelift. The bi-state agency that runs the terminal recently announced a competition that will pay $1 million to any designer who can give the unloved transportation hub a much-needed makeover. However, the Port Authority clearly states that this is more than just an “architecture contest” and its winner won’t be decided “solely on aesthetic or design criteria.” Instead, the agency said it will grade concepts on cost-effectiveness, ability to meet bus and passenger demand, and the extent they can minimize traffic on surrounding streets.
According to New York’s Daily News, the bus terminal handles 220,000 trips a day, with the number of daily trips expected to grow more than 22% to 270,000 in 2020. Located on 42nd Street and 8th Avenue, the bus terminal is operating over capacity and engineers believe that the building will have to be torn down within the next 20 years.
But the Port Authority can’t agree as to the fate of the bus terminal. Another possible solution the agency is entertaining is to build a second bus terminal in New Jersey that would link up with either an extended PATH system or a new trans-Hudson rail tunnel to New York’s Penn Station.
Despite the inner conflict, the Port Authority announced that submissions to the “International Design and Deliverability Competition” will be accepted through April 12, 2016. Finalists for phase two will be announced later in April and the competition winner will be revealed in September. —Politico NY
(Image: Politico NY)
