I wonder whatever happened to a proposal by one of New York City’s developers – Vornado Realty Trust from June 2010 to pay for construction to reopen the old Hilton Corridor, also known as the Gimbels passageway. They offered to do this in exchange for a city zoning variance to construct a high-rise office building at Seventh Avenue and 32nd Street.
Until the late 1960s, Long Island Rail Road riders exiting east at Penn Station had a direct underground passageway known as the Hilton Corridor. This provided a simple indoor connection to the 34th Street Herald Square the IND and BMT subway, along with the PATH station complex.
Further, there was an underground passageway along Sixth Avenue that went as far north as 42nd Street. As a teenager, I remember avoiding the rain and snow by using this indoor path. It would provide easy access to both the main branch of the New York public library and long-gone Stern’s department store on 42nd Street..
Both passageways were closed many decades ago by New York City Transit and the LIRR, due to security issues. If reopened today, commuters would have easy connections to the Broadway N, R & Q and Sixth Avenue B,D,F & M subway lines along with PATH – rather than walking outside on the street exposed to both inclement weather and heavy vehicular traffic.
By using either the subway or walking (most New Yorkers can manage a five- or 10-block walk and we could all use some healthy exercise), riders would have direct access via these subway lines to midtown or the East Side of Manhattan along either the Broadway, 6th Avenue, 42nd, 53rd, 59th or 63rd Street corridors, served by numerous subway lines and stations.
How disappointing that the old Hilton corridor, which previously provided transit options for thousands of rush hour commuters, continues to lay dormant after so many decades.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority currently faces a financial shortfall in the hundreds of millions this year, billions more in the current five-year capital program and long-term debt of $28 billion.
There is only so much revenue from MTA Bridge and Tunnel toll fees available for transit. The infusion of over $1 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus funding was a one-time only windfall.
A 9 percent unemployment rate has resulted in declining ridership and fare box revenues. The economic recession has impacted employee, real estate mortgage transfer and other tax revenues that support the MTA.
Past plans for creating new revenues by tolling free East River bridges and implementing congestion pricing within New York City continue to face opposition by a majority of members in both the New York City Council and state Legislature, including many from Nassau County.
Neither the city council, city comptroller, mayor, state Legislature, state comptroller or governor advocates or identifies any sources for increasing funding by the billions of dollars that may be necessary to support keeping the current fare structure, maintaining basic state of good repair and system expansion along with funding high-tech improvements.
New York City, Albany and Washington all face current and future year multibillion-dollar budget shortfalls accompanied by declining tax revenues.
New York City and New York State each carry over $60 billion and growing long-term debt.
Uncle Sam now has over $14 trillion in long-term debt.
Why not consider taking advantage of the private sector picking up the tab for a significant transportation improvement that could benefit thousands of transportation riders at no cost to taxpayers or government?
Larry Penner
Great Neck
