Work is active all along Route 9A

Crossing West Street (Route 9A) is growing safer for the tides of workers and residents who travel between Battery Park City and other downtown neighborhoods. With improvements to pedestrian bridges, crosswalks, and traffic signals, the Promenade South project continues to roll out upgrades to the West Side Highway from West Thames up to Chambers Street.

The State Department of Transportation (SDOT) presented the latest project updates at this week’s Community Board 1 World Trade Center (WTC) Committee meeting. Route 9A Project Director Joe Brown, who oversees the highway’s improvements up to 59th Street, said that the $189 million renovation has made progress, though overall completion has been affected by WTC work.

With the Port Authority’s heavy construction at both the South Bathtub and “east-west connector” (pedestrian concourse) sites, SDOT planners have had to alter the sequence of utility work between Liberty and Vesey Streets. The schedule now shows that area accommodating the Port’s major infrastructure work -- to keep from having to open up the roadbed twice -- extending Promenade South’s full completion date to approximately 2014.

But while the WTC area has it’s own timeline, the remaining Promenade areas are largely wrapping up. South of Albany, crosswalks have been repainted and medians renovated. The Rector Street Bridge also underwent a pavement and lighting overhaul last fall to boost its longevity. A new bridge may eventually replace the current one, but it would be a project funded and implemented by the Battery Park City Authority (BPCA).

The Liberty Street Bridge reconfiguration is expected to begin soon

SDOT also is contracted by the Port Authority to reconfigure the Liberty Street Bridge to divert pedestrians to Albany Street. That project is now underway, and the new bridge landing will be located outside 90 West Street starting in early April. By relocating the landing, the Port can excavate the South Bathtub and build the Vehicular Security Center entrance there.

North of Vesey Street, SDOT has coordinated major utility work with BPCA and Goldman Sachs, for its new tower’s tie-ins. Remaining work will conclude at the end of the month. Further north, utilities were replaced and roadways, walkways, and the bikeway have been rebuilt at both Murray and Warren, with water-main replacement ending soon at Chambers Street.

Escalators at the Vesey Street Bridge are now under the purview of the Port Authority, and east escalator should be running again in a matter of days, following repairs and thorough testing. The bridge is temporary, however, and Brown said that it will be dismantled once the Port replaces the crossing with its new east-west underground concourse (at Fulton Street), expected in December 2012.

Throughout the various phases, the SDOT has increased its traffic management budget to $5 million for TEAs, and $4 million for flaggers. Brown said his agency also is considering several adding new safety measures to the project, like installing countdown clocks for pedestrians, readjusting signal timing for crosswalks, and changing the street’s speed limit. With CB1’s advocacy, the SDOT also may restore the left-turn lane from southbound West Street onto Albany Street, though that is still being examined.

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