Bus terminal rebuild: deck over Lincoln Tunnel approach is three-quarters built and will become a 3.5-acre park

Port Authority officials led reporters through the construction zone of the $11 billion Midtown Bus Terminal rebuild on Friday, showing off one of its first big pieces: a deck being built over the tangle of Lincoln Tunnel approach roads in Hell's Kitchen that will eventually become a 3.5-acre public park, Gothamist reported.

What is going up over Dyer Avenue

The deck spans the approach roads south of West 39th Street between Dyer and Ninth avenues. Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia described it as essentially a bridge over the lanes that carry car traffic in and out of the tunnel, held up by steel columns weighing 30 to 40 tons each; concrete will be poured on top once the structure is finished, according to Gothamist.

Steve Plate, the agency's chief of major capital projects, told Gothamist the underlying infrastructure is about three-quarters complete and should be done by the middle of next year. During construction the deck will be used to store buses and supplies. After the project wraps, it will be converted into the park, a change Plate said was driven largely by community boards that wanted more green space around the terminal.

The timeline

• Phase one (to about 2030): a temporary terminal between Ninth and Tenth avenues from 39th to 40th streets, plus a new ramp structure west of Tenth Avenue. Foundations for the interim terminal have already started, CBS New York reported.
• Ramps: crews are rerouting buses step by step and taking down the old elevated ramps "section by section" so the terminal can keep operating, Cate Britell, the Port Authority's director of tunnels, bridges and terminals, told ABC7 and CBS.
• 2035: the new main terminal on Eighth Avenue and the park are expected to be finished.

The terminal handles as many as 600 buses an hour, according to Gothamist, and about 200,000 daily passengers, according to CBS New York.

The commute right now

Since last week, some afternoon buses that do not use the Lincoln Tunnel's exclusive bus lane have been sent around to a ramp off West 39th Street to reach the gates. During Friday's tour, Gothamist saw a line of buses waiting for that ramp, and one driver had to back up after missing the sharp turn.

Garcia told CBS New York the agency has seen about a one-minute increase for buses getting into the terminal in the afternoon, depending on the route. Commuters interviewed by ABC7 described longer waits, particularly on the New Jersey side, and Garcia said the agency is checking traffic impacts every day and looking for ways to reduce disruptions.

The Port Authority says the finished terminal will have light-filled atriums, more space for buses, and shops and restaurants.