{"id":4201,"date":"2022-02-20T20:44:54","date_gmt":"2022-02-21T01:44:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vanshnookenraggen.com\/_index\/?p=4201"},"modified":"2024-01-08T15:33:07","modified_gmt":"2024-01-08T20:33:07","slug":"a-tunnel-too-far-part-2-hylans-dream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vanshnookenraggen.com\/_index\/2022\/02\/a-tunnel-too-far-part-2-hylans-dream\/","title":{"rendered":"A Tunnel Too Far, Part 2: Hylan’s Dream"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Proposed location of the Narrows Tunnel, 1888<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In the previous post<\/a> I outlined the history of the many plans to connect Staten Island to the rest of New York City via a rail tunnel. While most people assume that a tunnel would be too expensive to justify, I wanted to explore the possibilities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A note: all costs which will be discussed are not to be taken as dogma. They are based on the real costs associated with the 2nd Ave Subway, but are not a 1:1 ratio and do not reflect the specific challenges with underwater tunneling. They are there purely for comparison and understanding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding how Staten Island commutes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2020 census showed that Staten Island was home to 495,747 people. Employment figures (the most up-to-date numbers are from 2019) show Staten Island is home to 121,120 workers who live and work on the island. On the island, the majority of jobs are in Health Care and Social Assistance (30,723), followed by Retail (14,389), Education (14,106), and Construction (10,494). <\/p>

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Staten Island job centers for those who live and work on the island. Source, OnTheMap<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Using OnTheMap we can see where most jobs are clustered: St. George, Old Place (where a number of Amazon warehouses have opened over the last decade), Staten Island University Hospital in Dongan Hills, the Staten Island Mall in New Springfield, the Richmond University Medical Center in West New Brighton, a cluster of industrial jobs along the North Shore, and a number of retail strips throughout the island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The island has one rail line, the 14mi long Staten Island Railway (SIR). In 2018 the MTA claimed a ridership of 4.6m riders<\/a>. To put that into perspective, that would be a relatively busy bus line in any of the other boroughs. This number is an estimate due to the fact that many of the stations do not have fare gates. In fact, fares are only collected at St. George and Tompkinsville; all other stations are free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SIR once had two additional branches which were abandoned after World War II. The South Beach Branch was since been redeveloped, but the North Shore Branch still has much of the right-of-way intact (though, as will be discussed, not all of it remains.) The North Shore Branch was the only direct connection to the main land via the Arthur Kill lift bridge. The bridge is still active and serves the New York Container Terminal at the northwest corner of the island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Off Island Commuting<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Staten<\/a>
Staten Island Commuter Inflow\/Outflow (2019 jobs)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

If anyone is interested, I have created a Flickr gallery<\/a> showing the data gathered from OnTheMap for all commutes on and off the island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manhattan<\/strong><\/td><\/td>Hudson Co.<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
In<\/td>4,000<\/td>In<\/td>1,861<\/td><\/tr>
Out<\/td>59,788<\/td>Out<\/td>3,789<\/td><\/tr>
Brooklyn<\/strong><\/td><\/td>Essex Co.<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
In<\/td>17,073<\/td>In<\/td>1,440<\/td><\/tr>
Out<\/td>40,994<\/td>Out<\/td>2,321<\/td><\/tr>
Bronx<\/strong><\/td><\/td>Union Co.<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
In<\/td>4,364<\/td>In<\/td>1,987<\/td><\/tr>
Out<\/td>5,218<\/td>Out<\/td>3,243<\/td><\/tr>
Queens<\/strong><\/td><\/td>Middlesex Co.<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
In<\/td>7,640<\/td>In<\/td>3,227<\/td><\/tr>
Out<\/td>13,972<\/td>Out<\/td>4,201<\/td><\/tr>
NYC Total<\/strong><\/td><\/td>NJ Total<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
In<\/td>32,177<\/td>In<\/td>8,515<\/td><\/tr>
Out<\/td>119,962<\/td>Out<\/td>23,554<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Most workers who live on Staten Island work off of the island. For purposes of this evaluation I’ve decided to only look at commuters going to the other four boroughs and the closest counties in New Jersey. The outflow (commuters from SI) and inflow (commuters to SI) are shown above and listed to the right (2019 numbers).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since Staten Island once had direct commuter rail access to NJ, many planners have proposed rebuilding this connection. A separate idea to extend the Hudson Bergen Light Rail over the Bayonne Bridge has been proposed. But what these numbers show is that if we are going to make the investment of connecting Staten Island to the city with rail, it must go directly to New York City and not through NJ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staten Island is connected to the rest of New York City via the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge and the Staten Island Ferry to South Ferry at the tip of Lower Manhattan. The ferry serves only passengers, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; it is free<\/a>. The Verrazzano Bridge has two decks with 13 lanes total, one being a dedicated bus\/HOV lane and another being a flexible, part-time bus\/HOV lane; the bridge has different levels of tolls which range from $10.17 to $2.75 for residents. As I explained in my previous post, the bridge was not built to allow the addition of rail tracks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Verrazzano Bridge opened in 1964 and spurred development on the island. This development was mostly suburban in nature, requiring a car to get around. So while most commuters work in the typical business districts within the city (e.g. Midtown, Financial District, downtown Brooklyn), drivers are able to work in a variety of different locations not dependent on transit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n