Many proposals in the last half decade have been dreamed and/or stopped dead in its tracks to construct a new Hudson River crossing connecting Manhattan and New Jersey. One of them is the ARC Tunnel which was cancelled by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in 2010 because of its spiraling out of control costs. Subsequently, Mayor Bloomberg of New York City silently instructed municipal staff to begin studying the possibility of stretching the city’s subway system into the state across the Hudson River.
The 7 Train was the prime candidate in this proposal. It would be extended about four miles westward to Secaucus Junction where a major hub for NJ Transit trains already exists. With an estimated cost of $5.3 billion, this is almost half the cost of the cancelled ARC Tunnel proposal of $11 billion. The explanation for this is that there are already existing tunnels that the 7 Line runs through in Manhattan that this new Hudson River tunnel would connect to; the ARC Tunnel did not have this advantage as major tunneling would have to be done underneath the streets of Manhattan.
The conception of this new plan is unique because it would be the first subway to go outside New York City’s borders. It would connect New Jersians to Times Square, and Grand Central Terminal, both major train hubs. This plan is brilliant because it costs half as much and would relieve congestion on existing Amtrak, NJ Transit and PATH trains. It would provide more capacity and spur development of areas in Manhattan and New Jersey it runs through.
Extending the 7 Line across the Hudson River to New Jersey should be high priority for the two states. It is widely known that we need to build additional crossings from Manhattan to New Jersey and when there is something available at a bargain compared to other proposals, we should take it.
Map of the Proposed 7 Train Extension
Source: http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2010/11/17/to-replace-the-arc-tunnel-a-subway-extension-to-new-jersey/
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/nyregion/17tunnel.html?_r=1&hp
In the US, I feel like everyone only thinks about money. There would have been long-term benefits of the ARC tunnel. It would have solved all the traffic problems on the nearby highways as well as the fact that the sole rail tunnel under the Hudson River, both used by NJTransit and Amtrak, is overcrowded. I know that there would be cost overruns but this does not mean that we should shut down a very important project. We are already spending enough money on highway related funds but my concern is that as of today, cars are among the most unsustainable way of traveling.