Gothamist: Highway in a Box - Some Day

ttorrison

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 19:28:08 -0500

Drewo is 100% right. Other cities abound with underground roads (Paris and Oslo come to mind). Let's bury as many major roads in New York that we can. But why stop at roads? Let's build underground rail connections to the airports. A high speed rail loop from Ground Zero to Grand Central and Penn Station while we're at it. The Second Avenue subways too while we're at it. Let's really put the sandhogs and the prefab tunnels to work. Here's to our subterranean future!

drewo

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 15:30:30 -0500

The FDR drive could use the same treatment. That could double the width of the East River Park and eliminate the noise that ruins much of the pleasure derived from visiting that park. And then even some city streets like Canal Street could use the same treatment. Reduce the surface Canal Street to a simple 2 lane only local road and use the remaining surface to widen the already overwhelmed sidewalks. Since most drivers use it to get across town, just bury the damn thing. I know, lots of subways under there, but it can be done. Most major roadways, like the plumbing and electrical wiring in a home, are (sometimes) a necessity - but do not necessarily need to be seen or heard.

Joe

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 14:12:24 -0500

Gas in the US is still much cheaper than in Europe. When I was in Germany a couple of weeks ago it was going for 1.40 Euro/liter, which is something like $7/gallon.

timbnyc

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 13:53:26 -0500

Trump's "plan" was for the govt to pay for moving the highway. Funny how people think it's unfair for the govt to tell landlords what they can charge for rent, but not for developers to have the govt pay to increase the value of their property.

anonymass

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 13:47:18 -0500

Gas prices in the US are now about in line with what Europeans pay. Their high prices go in part to fund government projects; ours go straight to Mobil-Exxon fat cat salaries. I'm curious where - besides Iraq (ironically enough) you think gas is $8/gallon. Or even anywhere near that.

Ace

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 13:35:04 -0500

Yes, it should be buried. Actually, it should be torn down and carted away; there is no need for private cars in NYC and there are way too many of them.

jmchez

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 12:54:34 -0500

People now realize that Westway would have been good for the city? Oh geez, really? Well, we have to thank the environuts and their 10 year fight to protect the striped bass, which apprently, couldn't spawn anywhere along the hundreds of miles of both sides of the Hudson and thousands of miles elsewhere but only on those 10 miles along Manhattan. There are many things I wonder about, but how the city allowed the old Penn Station to be torns down and how the city and state allowed a project, which would have benefited miilions of its citizens, to be killed by demagogues are two things that forever bother me.

Sean

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 11:52:17 -0500

To Trump's credit, he had a plan for burying the roadway when he originally built those buildings that he was prepared to fund, at the exact same time that the city was stupidly spending money to repair the current viaduct. Good 'ol Jerry Nadler killed the whole thing out of a personal vendetta against Trump (Trump had called him "fat" at some point in the past, and he was angry that Trump's plan would have increased the value of the apartments he was building) This silly revenge left us with an uninhabitable park for 15 years.

Eric

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:47:38 -0500

The parts of the world that pay $8 for gas also aren't totally dependent on cars for every action of daily life.

general observation

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:26:11 -0500

$3 is a luxury pursuit? By your theory the rest of the world paying $8 per gallon must live like Sheiks! $3 is nothing! I drive and I gladly pay $3.

Eric

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:02:53 -0500

They should just tear it down. With gas at $3 and rising, driving is going to become a luxury pursuit again. Reclaim the waterfront for the city.

timbnyc

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:01:20 -0500

That graphic seems to exaggerate the amount of land at issue. Can anyone produce one that's to scale?

timbnyc

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 10:01:20 -0500

That graphic seems to exaggerate the amount of land at issue. Can anyone produce one that's to scale?