VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE: DIAGRAMS / MAPS

    Copyright © 1976 by Steven Faust

BIBLIOGRAPHY

DIAGRAMS / MAPS

This report recommends the addition of a pedestrian/bicycle path across the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. The report projects an initial annual volume of 210,000 trips, consisting of 60,000 bicycle crossings and 150,000 pedestrian crossings. Development of the Gateway National Recreation Area will increase this demand.

Alternative crossings considered are: pathways separate from roadways; limited and unlimited use of vehicular roadways; bus service; and ferry service.

The report recommends as the best alternative, a single, separate bicycle / pedestrian path on the north side of the bridge.

This separate pathway would not alter nor interfere with the existing vehicular flow and would present minimal interference, during construction.

The projected cost of construction is between $2 and $9 million, although with a best estimate of $4 million.

Funding for up to 90% of the project is available from federal aid transportation and recreation programs.

The local share would thus be about $400,000. The annual debt service of this local share can be less than $29,000 per year.

The estimated pedestrian/bicycle traffic is approximately 1% of current vehicular traffic, while estimates of construction costs of this walk are about 1% of the total cost of the bridge ($900 million).

The suggested next step is a detailed engineering study to include optimal physical design, cost and construction schedule.
 
 

"It is a structure of superlatives, a creation of imagination, art architecture and engineering. Its scale, magnitude and beauty will fire the mind of every stranger and bring a tear to every returning native eye."

Additional copies of this report are available from

Steven Faust, AICP, 415 Sixth Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11215
 
 

OBJECTIVE:

The object of this study is to provide a means for bicyclists and pedestrians to cross the Narrows between Brooklyn and Staten Island. There has been no such facility since the closing of the 69th Street Brooklyn Ferry 13 years ago. This occurred four days after the opening of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge on November 21st, 1964. This bridge, designed to unite two of New York City's boroughs, was opened without a pedestrian/bicycle pathway.

There have been many changes in the 13 years since the bridge opened. Bicycle sales, and especially adult bicycle sales, have exceeded automobile sales in the United States in recent years (e.g. 13 million bicycles were sold in U.S./1972). (1)

Bicycling for recreation, for travel, and for travel to recreation, claims much more of people's time, money and interest than at the time the bridge was planned.

Since the bridge opened, we have endured a paralyzing gas shortage, with fuel price hikes and further shortages facing us. The price of a new American car is doubling, while the EPA tells us they are hazardous to our health. Environmental controls will directly affect how New Yorkers will (or won't) travel in this city. Transit fares have gone up drastically from 15 cents and not even the Staten Island Ferry costs a nickel anymore. These are all factors which no planner could have foreseen in 1964.

For cyclists, the alternative to the late Brooklyn ferry is a 15 mile detour through Brooklyn and Manhattan, punctuated by the Brooklyn Bridge and the Staten Island Ferry. This ride takes at least two hours, including the ferry crossing. A cyclist could cross a two-mile Verrazano-Narrows pathway in 15 to 25 minutes, while a pedestrian could cross in 30 to 40 minutes. The pedestrian has fared better than the cyclist, at this moment, since they are able to take a bus across the bridge. On the bus, the passenger is tantalized by rich views of the harbor beyond the window, but is unable to stop and enjoy the view at leisure.

The citizens of New York City have shown a growing interest in outdoor activity, a concern for conservation of resources, and a concern for the development of recreation facilities and improved access for the handicapped and underprivileged. New York City has one of the world's most developed waterfronts, and to this we are in the process of adding a major national park along the coastline to serve our special urban recreation needs. It is ironic that this park, intended to serve a largely non-automobile oriented city, should be split in half by an auto-only bridge. This is the only public highway connection between these two counties, yet it is restricted to only one type of traffic, motor vehicles.
 
 

(1) Cleckner, R.M., "The Emerging Issue of the Bicycle," Bicycle Manufacturers Association, Washington, D.C.
 
 

No systematic origin-destination studies have been made of these 63,000 cyclists so there is no count of the number from Brooklyn nor where they are located. Informal interviews indicate that cyclists travel several miles from both the Battery and St. George, 15 to 30 mile round trips not being uncommon. Since over half of Brooklyn is over 15 miles round trip from the Battery alone, it can be expected that the majority of Brooklyn cyclists do not use the ferry and cannot now reach Staten Island. Thus, it is unlikely that the opening of a Narrows crossing will reduce the number of cyclists using the ferry. The number of bicycle users has been increasing despite the increase in ferry tolls from 10 cents to 25 cents. Users have risen from 45,596 in fiscal '71 to 63,726 in fiscal '75, a growth of almost 10% per year.

On the contrary, a rise in ferry use may be expected due to the opening of a Verrazano Bridge pathway. Research of the Brooklyn-Staten Island Ferry uncovered the fact that Bay Ridge residents formerly used this route to commute to work in Manhattan. Rather than walk up the hill to the RR subway, they would pay an extra nickel at St. George for the New York boat. Their trip was about the same travel time and cost 5 cents less than the subway. Using the new pathway, a bicycle trip from Bay Ridge to the Battery would involve only 4.5 miles of cycling plus a 25-minute ferry trip, a total of less than 60 minutes traveling. This travel time is very near that of other rush hour modes. This new route will attract a few Brooklyn commuters, many Brooklyn recreation cyclists, and will provide Manhattan cyclists with a safe and convenient way to reach Brooklyn and the Rockaways.

This ferry data provides no estimates of recreational pedestrian use of either ferry or Narrows crossing; for this, the study uses data from the George Washington Bridge.
 
 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Total for Year, Both Ways (NYC Fiscal Year: July 1 through June 30)

1971-1972 = 45,596

1972-1973 (data unavailable)

1973-1974 = 56,656

1974-1975 = 60,915

1975-1976 = 63,726

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

By Month, By Direction (July 1, 1971 through June 30, 1972)

Month .... Staten Island .... Whitehall

..................... From ................ From ........ Total

July, 1971 .. 3,465 ........ 3,670 ........ 7,135

Aug. ........... 3,916 ........ 4,011 ........ 7,927

Sep. ........... 2,710 ........ 2,853 ........ 5,563

Oct. ........... 1,720 ........ 1,807 ........ 3,527

Nov. ............. 842 .......... 869 ........ 1,711

Dec. ............. 468 .......... 555 ........ 1,023

Jan., 1972 .... 423 .......... 452 .......... 875

Feb. ............. 257 .......... 292 .......... 549

Mar. ............. 891 .......... 993 ........ 1,884

Apr. .......... 2,124 ........ 2,111 ........ 4,235

May. ........... 2,895 ........ 2,998 ........ 5,893

June. .......... 2,604 ........ 2,670 ........ 5,274

Total for Year 22,315 .. 23,281 ... 45,596

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

One Week (April 12, 1976 through April 18, 1976)

Total Trips = 2,168

Day --- Date -- No. of Trips --- Comments

Mon. 4/12 ... 56

Tue. 4/13 ... 126

Wed. 4/14 ... 220

Thur 4/15 ... 310 .. School vacation, Passover 1st day

Fri. 4/16 ... 284 .. Good Friday

Sat. 4/17 ... 568 .. Weather over 90 deg F.

Sun. 4/18 ... 604 .. Easter Sunday

Total Trips .. 2,168

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

One Week (July 12, 1975 through July 18, 1975)

Total Trips = 2,298

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Data supplied by NYC Dept. of Marine and Aviation.

An annual volume can be projected, assuming a mean of 2,500 pedestrians per week; there were 130,000 pedestrians per year and 46,800 cyclists crossing. The total traffic was therefore 176,800 per year. The ratio of bicycles to pedestrians is I to 2.8. Casual observation of the Brooklyn Bridge corroborates the GWB results: 3 to 5 times more pedestrians than cyclists.

The study uses the GWB bicycle/pedestrian ratio to project the number of recreational pedestrian users of the Staten Island Ferry. 63,726 bicycles multiplied by 2.8 results in 178,433 pedestrian trips, or a total of 242,159. Therefore, as a conservative estimate, total annual traffic volumes on a Narrows crossing should be in excess of 200,000 crossings.
 
 

3.6% of the users of Great Kills Park in Staten Island arrived by bicycle as compared to less than 3% on public transit. This park can be reached from the Narrows via a five-mile, 25-minute ride on a low traffic route along South Beach and Miller Field. One million visitors in 1974.

Jamaica Bay section had 3.5% of arrivals by bike as compared to less than 5% by transit. There was no indication of which cyclists had specific destinations in the park as opposed to those there to enjoy the park's bicycle paths.

(2) Brooklyn Bridge Distance is from Center Street Manhattan to the Washington Street Stairs.

(3) "Gateway Transportation Study - Assessed Alternatives," prepared under contract between Gateway National Recreation Area, National Park Service, U. S. Dept. of the Interior, and Administration and Management Research Association of New York City, Inc., prepared by Transportation and Regional Planning Division, New York Dept. of City Planning, April 1976.

Riis Park transport modes were exclusively measured for beach users. Of the 2.75 million visitors in 1974, 13,750 or 0.5% were estimated to have arrived by bicycle, versus 15% by public transit. This 0.5% does not include cyclists on day rides with Riis Park one of a series of destinations. Even then, there were at least 27,000 bicycle crossings of the Marine Parkway Bridge that summer.

Cyclists from Brooklyn must travel at least 5 miles each way to reach Riis Park from ANY residential area or local street. These cyclists using the park are willing to make the round trip of 10 miles over open, windy, sandy, poorly maintained bike paths and ride with auto traffic on Flatbush Avenue.

There are additional bicycle users beyond the swimming season, cyclists who enjoy the light traffic, quiet and cool weather of spring and fall. These cyclists extend user benefit periods for recreation areas by engaging in activities beyond the primary user season.

The fourth section of Gateway, Sandy Hook, N. J., had only 0.3% of users arrive by bike. Public transit carried only 0.6% while the remaining 99% arrived by car.

In three of these areas, bicycle use is in the same general order of magnitude as public transit, when compared to private cars. In the case of Riis Park, the survey method led to underrating the park's impact on bicycle use.
 
 

The abandoned South Beach branch of the Staten Island Rapid Transit runs directly by the foot of the pathway. The grade separated right-of-way extends 1.2 miles north to Bay Street in Stapleton, and south of the toll plaza it extends one mile to South Beach, also on separate right-of-way. Federal funding is available (up to 90%) for conversion of this roadbed into a recreation trail. (4)

The foot of the bridge is served by three city buses: the R2, R7 and R104, providing tourist and pedestrian access.
 
 

These paths are not limited to exclusive rights-of-way, but rather form an interconnected network using the City's streets and bridges. The impact of opening a new link, such as across the Narrows, is far out of proportion to the two mile addition because it makes much more efficient use of existing bike routes. The Bridge pathway effectively doubles the available places for Brooklyn and Staten Island residents to cycle.

These mileage recommendations imply that the BOR expects large volumes of cycling. In fact, another BOR formula suggests there will be 0.05 bicycle trips per week per person. (6) For Brooklyn this implies 130,000 trips per week. For New York City as a whole, 390,000 trips per week. Richmond alone should generate 11,000 trips a week. The above figures are many times larger than the average estimated Bridge demand of 1,100 bicycle crossings per week.

There is no information about average trip length or the dispersion of trip lengths to help us interpret these large cycling trip volumes. Data from bicycle accident studies that the author is making indicates that a larger volume of bicycle riding is taking place than is reflected in traditional traffic counts. It is therefore possible that these BOR projections reflect the actual situation.

In summary, these BOR formulas indicate a need for much greater bicycling facilities than currently exist in New York City.
 
 

(4) PL94-210; 1976 Railroad Reform Act; Sec. 809; Conversion of Abandoned Rights-of-Way.

(5) Podelske, Richard C. "Investing in Urban Bicycle Facilities," Transportation Engineering Journal, ASCE, Vol. 100, Note 3. Aug. 1974. Pp. 687-700.

(6) Correspondence with New York City Transportation Administration, July 1976.
 
 

Tri-State Regional Planning Commission:

"Summer Recreation Use Patterns: Citizen Survey Series: 5"

The Tri-State Regional Planning Commission sponsored a 1975 survey of outdoor recreation use patterns in the New York Metropolitan area. (7) This survey sampled the rates of participation and user attitudes evidenced during the 13 week summer season. The responses are based upon the population 15 years of age and older. With children under 15 excluded, New York City's population base is 6,032,000. The following statistics are abstracted or calculated from the survey.

The Tri-State survey found New Yorkers cycled 0.346 times per person per week, as compared to the BOR estimated 0.05 trips. During the summer of 1975, New Yorkers cycled 6.9 times more often than the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation projected.

Bicycling, with 4.5 cycling trips per person in the population, had the second highest participation rate of the summer after swimming. 25.4 percent of New York City's population cycled at least once during the summer, with an average of 17.7 bike trips per cyclist. There was a total of 27,144,000 bicycle trips during the 13 week period.

Brooklyn has approximately 1.9 million people aged 15 and over. There were about 657,000 bicycle trips per week in Brooklyn alone, assuming the Tri-State survey results are consistent across all five boroughs. This survey is the most comprehensive study of New York bicycle and recreation use the author has found to date, however the survey did not include distance cycled and therefore offers no breakdown of trip volumes versus distance traveled.
 
 

Alternatives:

Alternate means are available to allow cyclists and pedestrians to cross the Narrows. These options are of two types: vehicle served, i.e. bus services, bicycle van-trailer, and ferry service; or secondly, user propelled, i.e. a separate bicycle/pedestrian walkway or use of the existing motor vehicle roadway.
 
 

Van-trailer service operates as a special point-to-point shuttle, carrying about a dozen cyclists in a van with their bikes in the trailer. A 14-month demonstration project in San Diego carried more than 20,000 cyclists at a 25 cent one-way fare. This project was directly replaced by the above noted bus service. The American Youth Hostels uses charter school busses to transport bicycle groups. with half the seats removed, there is room for 30 bicycles with all passengers seated. Trailers would load more quickly than the busses, but both require street space for loading and queuing of bikes. Round trip times of at least 30 minutes can be expected.

The carrying of bicycles on regular NYCTA bus service presents problems of loading, scheduling and capacity. Carrying bicycles on board entails risk of inconvenience and injury to the cyclist and other passengers. The narrow doorways of TA buses make them difficult to load and unload quickly. Rear racks have limited capacity, and though average daily capacity may be met, peak loading will exceed available space. The Staten Island Ferry reports that frequently groups of over 100 cyclists will reach a crossing point together. Extra schedule time of only a few minutes would be required to load racks. This type of bus service requires little capital outlay, but provides only a limited level of service.

A special shuttle service would provide better peak load capacity, through larger capacity, but would incur high operating and capital costs. Provision of late night and off season service would likely be curtailed or non-existent, yet Staten Island Ferry experience shows a smaller but steady night traffic. The off-peak traffic may feasibly be carried by the regular TA bus service.

Special bicycle service should be considered in conjunction with Gateway access plans to reach the Staten Island beaches from Brooklyn. A discussion of the estimated costs of bus service can be found in the Gateway Transportation Study.

Any sort of bus service will lose most potential benefits from pedestrian traffic. This study believes that a large part of the 150,000 pedestrian crossings will be new users. That is, they will be on the bridge only because they can walk there. This includes not only Brooklyn residents but out-of-town tourists viewing the city from the longest bridge in the world.
 
 

Bicycle ferries are successfully used in Amsterdam, Holland, to allow bicycles and mopeds to bypass auto-only harbor tunnels. These boats run on 10-minute headways throughout the day, carrying at peak periods over 400 cyclists each.

The National Park Service is considering water transit to connect Gateway Park. Sandy Hook in particular is 50 miles by land and 12 miles by sea from New York. It may be possible for such a service to stop at the Narrows, but because of extra docking and loading time, the average speed of this service will fall. Also the Park Service is not likely to run such a service 12 months a year. In general, the carrying of bicycles on these boats will encourage visitors to travel without their cars throughout Gateway Park.
 
 

The cost of providing a pair of bicycle shoulder lanes is in the vicinity of $100,000 and would consist of restriping the lanes, signs, and some form of expansion joint cover grids.

This option is the lowest cost permanent path possible, and, within the weather limitations noted above, would provide a benefit to experienced cyclists.
 
 

(8) Harold C. Munn, "Bicycles and Traffic," Transportation Engineering Journal, ASCE, Vol. 101, No. TE4, November 1975, p. 759.

Recommended Alternative:

Potential Problems:

During the course of this study, a series of questions about the pathway were often asked. The following are summary questions and answers:

High Winds:

Will high winds prove dangerous? All of the other New York Bridges have essentially similar wind levels, and pedestrians and cyclists continue to use them. Under high wind conditions, both pedestrians and cyclists move carefully. There is no risk of hitting a vehicle while in the path, and if the side-rails are designed with smooth edges, users will face little chance of injury.

Suicides:

Will the path encourage Suicides? There have already been many suicides from the bridge. Most jumpers have driven up, to abandon their cars at center span. One young man reached the bridge in a taxi. At present there is no effective guard rail on the bridge to restrain a jumper. The proposed walkway would have a railing at least 5 feet high, of a design to resist climbing. No railing will ever be 100% effective.

Robbery and Muggings:

Evidence from the Shore Parkway pathway indicates the area does not have a high incidence of crime. The design of the path can reduce crime by avoiding blind corners or turns. An addition to the existing bridge television surveillance system can alert security personnel to problems. The Brooklyn end of the path is directly visible from residences, while the Staten Island end passes the toll plaza. Since the path needs no steps, security patrols can be made by motor scooter right on the pathway.
 
 

Proposed Pathway: Design:

The following section describes a feasible layout of a bridge pathway. (9)

This report finds that it is feasible to install a bicycle/pedestrian pathway on the north side of the bridge, the right hand side facing Staten Island, that will be completely independent of the motor traffic roadways. This pathway can be built without any steps or steep slopes, and can in fact meet all requirements of access for physically

handicapped. (10)

The pathway will be supported by the bridge structure for 10,895 feet and run at ground level for another 1,500 feet, for a total of 12,395 feet. 6,690 feet of the path is on the suspended section.

This elevation, in fact, is one of the major assets of the pathway. It places the user at an elevation above every land mass in the New York City area. There is nothing to match this view south of the World Trade Center.
 
 

(9) Bridge plans were made available to the author through the cooperation of the TBTA engineering staff. The opinions presented here regarding the pathway are those of the author.

(10) "Barrier Free Design: The Law, Vol. 1-1976," Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association, New York, N. Y.

(11) Whitt, Frank Rowland and Wilson, David Gordon, "Bicycling Science," MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. 1974, p. 43.

The clearance between the suspender ropes is 8 feet, but the structure has room for up to a 14-foot wide path. In the case of a path wider than 8 feet, the suspender ropes would pass through the deck surface, as they do on both the GWB and Brooklyn Bridge. This extra width will provide space for benches and allow people to stand outside of the traffic stream. The standard for two-way wheel chair passage is a minimum of five feet, which the proposed path meets for its entire length. There is enough width for pedestrians, bicycles, carriages, and even benches on the pathway.

At each end, as the lower level roadway reaches ground level, the pathway separates from the side of the upper level and passes over the lower level roadway. From this point, the pathway drops to grade level on its own supports. The path surface should be between 10 and 15 feet wide to provide comfortably for the expected mix and volume of traffic. As an extreme cost saving measure, a seven foot wide emergency sidewalk running 1~,700 feet up the Brooklyn approach could be modified for pathway service, but would provide only a minimal six foot pathway. The savings from the narrower pathway segment would be less than $200,000.
 
 

Pedestrians and cyclists will be free of traffic from the time they enter the path at either School Street or Ft. Wadsworth. Gateway Park is planning to connect Ft. Wadsworth to South Beach with a new path, which will provide a traffic-free bypass of the bridge plaza area. The Fort offers a staging area for Park service shuttle busses to Miller Field and Great Kills Park. Rest rooms and water will be available at Gateway facilities within Ft. Wadsworth and at South Beach. Three city buses, the R2, R7, and R104, run past the entrance of the path.
 
 

Cost of Path Construction:

This report estimates construction costs to be between $2 million and $9 million, with $4 million being the expected price., Since no detailed plans have been drawn yet, it is difficult to properly estimate material and labor costs. Three different approaches have been taken in this estimate. First, a comparison with a recent similar project. Next, the sum of parts and labor from a current construction handbook. Finally, evaluation of an original 1964 price estimate.

The work is being done off peak, leaving all eight lanes clear during rush hours. Rather than jackhammering the pavement piecemeal, entire 11 by 60 foot roadway sections will be lifted out. A prefabricated, prepaved orthotropic steel deck will be lowered into place, providing a riding surface immediately upon installation. Through this construction period, the Port Authority intends to keep the bicycle/pedestrian paths open at all times.

These 11 by 60 foot sections are somewhat larger and heavier than those required for a pathway deck, but the technology would be very similar. Further, the GWB work includes removal of the existing structure, as well as installation of the new surface. This must take place while traffic is using all lanes twice a day. A pathway on the Verrazano would be all new material installed outside of the traffic lanes. A prefabricated pathway for the Verrazano will be less massive, easier to handle, quicker to install and therefore less expensive.

The total contract price for this job is $18,477,000. This is less than $2,000,000 per lane mile. The Port Authority estimated this job to cost $37 million. The contract price is 50% below the estimate. (12)

The Port Authority is replacing one mile of roadway lane down to steel for less than $2 million. This study feels that the unit costs of a pathway for the Verrazano should be no higher than the GWB's because any added complexity will be offset by the lighter materials and lower labor costs of the path.

Using this estimate, the two-mile Verrazano-Narrows pathway should cost between $2 and $4 million.
 
 

(12). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Press Release, 8 July 1976.

The study uses the 1976 Building Cost File, Eastern Edition, corrected for New York City. The following prices include both materials and labor. The pathway is considered in three sections: 9,195 feet of new pathway structure on the bridge's main span and approaches; 1,700 feet of modified sidewalk; and 1,500 feet of ground level pavement on Staten Island, for a total of 12,395 feet.

The new pathway structure and surface was estimated using precast, prestressed hollow core deck sections, 10 feet wide and 10 inches thick at $43.20 per linear foot. Adding an equal amount for side rails and added assembly difficulty results in a cost per linear foot of path of $86.40. The cost of 9,195 feet of decking is $794,448.

A four foot wide filler is needed for 6,600 feet between the pathway and the edge of the roadway. An aluminum subway-type grating costs $43.72 per linear foot, for a total cost of $288,552.

A total of $500,000 is budgeted for the expansion joint structures at the two towers.

There is 1,700 feet of existing emergency sidewalk on the Brooklyn approach which, after the addition of a guard rail, results in a six foot wide pathway. A steel guardrail on steel I beams costs $10.39 per foot. Adding a smooth inner face costs $2.00 extra, for a total of $20,961.

Near the Staten Island toll plaza the pathway runs 1,500 feet on the grass shoulder. The cost of base preparation and paving a 10 foot wide path is 99 cents per square foot, or $9.90 per linear foot, for 2 1/2 inch thick bituminous asphalt over a 4 inch crushed stone base. A guard rail is $10.33 per foot. The cost for this section is $30,345.

Extras such as direction and information signs, benches, extra lighting, additional TV cameras and other security devices may cost an additional $150,000.

The sum of all these parts is $1,784,306 or about $1.8 million. As noted above, this estimate lacks much detail, yet it includes all of the significant sections that make up the path. Adjusting the estimate upward by 100%, doubling the costs, results in a sum of $3.6 million. This is exactly in the range found from the GWB costs.

This estimate did not include detailed plans; even so, their price was only 1.1% of the original cost of the bridge. Today, after completion of the lower deck and the effects of inflation, the replacement value of the bridge is over $900 million.

The current estimates of the cost of building a single pathway as found by this study range from a low of $1.8 million or 0.2% of the current value, through $4 million or 0.44%, up to $9 million or 1%. At the same time, the demand for this pathway at 200,000 crossings per year is about one percent of the traffic currently using the bridge.
 
 

Financing of the Project

Up to 90% of this project is eligible for financing through federal aid highway and recreation programs. The local share may cost as little as $28,800 per year. The local share may be provided by a combination of state transportation and recreation funds, New York City general revenues, MTA and TBTA revenues, and donations from private individuals, organizations and foundations (see Appendix 1).

If total project costs are $4 million, the total local share would be only $400,000 which may be financed by a long term bond issue. Annual debt service depends upon the amortization period and the interest rate of the bonds. An approximation would be 30 years at 6% interest, requiring a constant annual payment of 7.2% of the original principal. Assuming the local share to be $400,000, the annual debt service of 7.2% is only $28,800 per year.
 
 

Federal Laws

Demand:

SI Ferry: 70,000 registered bicycle crossings per year. Plus approx.. 30,000 not registered.

The Five Boro Bike Tour ships 24,000 cyclists in one day that are not included in the DOT data.

Cyclists frequently board the ferry without properly registering their bikes with the deck hands.

Pedestrian use of Brooklyn Bridge and others is about three times the bicycle use.

Expect 100,000 bicycles and 300,000 pedestrians for a total of 400,000 non-motorized crossings per year.

About 500,000 pedestrians and cyclists have crossed the VNB over the years. The bulk of the crossings are during the NYC Marathon and the AYH 5 Boro Bike Tour. Both have about 20,000 to 25,000 participants each. The TBTA has provided access for numerous other smaller special event crossings. The 25 birthday of the Bridge had over 25,000 (? as many as 50,000 pedestrians?)

(By 1998 - the Bike NY / 5 Boro Bike Tour cyclists plus the NY Marathon runners total approximately 60,000 to 70,000 crossings each year. The total of pedestrian and bicycle crossings over the life of the VNB are approximately 1,000,000 now.)

1977 VNB Bike Bus:

Operated weekends by NYCTA from June 18 through Sep 11, 1977.

Total of 1,376 passengers over 27 days. Average 50.9 cyclists per day. Peak 115 on July 10.

Operation start at 8 AM and ended 4 PM (mid afternoon).

Bike-bus ridership was about 10 percent of the SI Ferry bicycle ridership on the same days.

TOLL RATES:

The VNB regular toll is $6.00 per car for a round trip ($3.00 each way.)

The commuter toll for Staten Island resident HOV-Car Pool is only $1.25 ($0.62 each way.)

With 3 passengers, the per person rate is $0.41 round trip, and only $0.20 per person one way, versus the $1.25 charged for a bus fare each way. Losses of revenue from a shift from car to bike may be as little as 20 cents.

PORT AUTHORITY O/D Data of early 80's:

Approx. 12 percent of the VNB traffic has an Origin /Destination within 3 to 4 miles of each side of the bridge, a total trip length of under 10 miles. Great potential for diversion from cars to bikes.

Richmond, VA:

A pedestrian path was suspended under the Robert E. Lee Bridge at a cost of $2.3 million. Designed by DRC Consultants, NYC. Engineering News Record p. 15, April 18, 1991.
 
 

.END VNB REPORT.