History
Planning
The existence of a vehicular tunnel under the East River "East River (New York)") between Manhattan and Brooklyn was proposed by the New York Chamber of Commerce and Transportation in 1925 as a response to increasing congestion in truck traffic in lower Manhattan. The tunnel could have been located between the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges.[29] A tunnel specifically connecting Battery Park in Manhattan to Red Hook in Brooklyn, passing under the East River and Governors Island, south of both the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges, was first proposed by Brooklyn Borough President J. J. Byrne in 1926. However, this plan was initially not received. support.[30] Albert Goldman, the Commissioner of Factories and Structures, brought back the plan in January 1929.[31] In February 1930, the city made public plans for a six-lane tunnel from West Street (Manhattan), Manhattan, to Hamilton Avenue, Brooklyn.[32][33] At that time, ferry service between the two points was slow and poor. reliable.[34] Real estate speculators believed that land prices along Hamilton Avenue would increase as a result of the construction of the tunnel and that freight shipments would be sent to Manhattan much more quickly. The tunnel proposal also included widening Hamilton Avenue to 200 feet and the construction of a large bridge over the Gowanus Canal, south of the entrance to the proposed tunnel.[33].
In May 1930, the Terminal Bridge Corporation applied to the New York City Board of Estimate for authorization to construct and operate a tunnel under the East River. The tunnel itself would have cost $58 million if it had three lanes or $50 million if it had only two lanes. meters.[37][38] In October 1933, the Board of Estimate approved funding for the tunnel in the city's 1934 budget.[39] Two months later, the Board of Estimate approved the Brooklyn-Manhattan Tunnel along with a Staten Island-Brooklyn tunnel under the Narrows.[40] The city wanted to request $50 million in federal funds,[41] but this requirement was removed from the vote. final.[40].
Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia established a public works authority in February 1935 so the city could apply for federal loans from the Public Works Administration (PWA). This authority was charged with raising $60 million in funding for the Brooklyn-Manhattan Tunnel.[42] That same month, city officials hired temporary workers to analyze possible locations for the proposed tunnel, so that a report could be written to forward the application to the PWA.[43] Brooklyn civic and political groups asked the city to begin construction immediately, so that traffic congestion could be reduced as much as possible. before.[44] However, President Franklin D. Roosevelt had stipulated that PWA funding would only be awarded to projects that could be completed within one year of the funds being released. Because the Brooklyn-Manhattan tunnel project would require more time, it and other freeway projects in New York City were declared ineligible to receive that funding.[45].
In January 1936, the New York State Legislature created the City Tunnel Authority to oversee the construction of a tunnel between Midtown Manhattan and Queens. The law also gave the authority the power to build the Brooklyn-Manhattan Tunnel if it could finance it.[46] At the time, the costs of constructing the Brooklyn-Manhattan Tunnel were estimated at $58 million.[47] Detailed plans for the tunnel were completed in May 1936. The project consisted of a twin-tube tunnel costing a total of $60.3 million that ran from Red Hook, Brooklyn, to the Battery, Manhattan, as well as a 2.3 million bridge over the Gowanus Canal.[48] The city approved the plans in January 1936.[49] A civic group wanted to plan for future increases in traffic volume, so they asked the city to conduct new studies of the Brooklyn-Manhattan tunnel project.[50] The tunnel was officially renamed the "Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel" in July 1936.[51] In November of that year, Brooklyn Borough President Raymond Ingersoll and Department of Parks and Recreation Commissioner Robert Moses unveiled a plan to connect the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel to Long Island's state park system through two new parks (Gowanus Parkway and Belt Parkway). The planned tunnel was also part of the Regional Plan Association's proposed park system to grow around New York City. The following month, the New York City Tunnel Authority called for proposals to conduct test borings for the tunnel.[54][55].
Copies of the tunnel plans were sent to Mayor La Guardia's administration in February 1937. Two tunnels, one in each direction, would connect the West Side Highway and East River Drive on the Manhattan side with Hamilton Avenue on the Brooklyn side.[56][57] In the future, the West Side Elevated Highway would be extended from the north, connecting with the new tunnel.[58] There would be a ventilation tower in the midpoint at the height of Governors Island because the tunnels would have 2,700 meters between their mouths,[56] and it was thought that the ventilation towers at each end would not be able to evacuate enough air.[59] The tunnels would be designed to carry a maximum of 15 million vehicles per year, but it was projected that only 9 million would use the tunnels during their first year of operation, and that the tunnels would not reach their maximum capacity until after a few years. 16 years old. The cost of the project increased to 70 million and La Guardia requested a federal delivery of 30 million so that construction could begin quickly. A toll of 25 cents per driver, to be collected at the Brooklyn end, would help finance the remainder of the tunnel and make it profitable.[56][57] The tunnel would also cut travel time between Brooklyn and lower Manhattan in half, as at the time there was no direct route for traffic between those two areas.[57] It was hoped, in turn, that this would help expedite freight deliveries between these areas, consequently reviving the freight industry. of Brooklyn that had been declining for some time.[60] The route between Hamilton Avenue and the West Side Highway was determined to be the most economical route that could be built.[57].
Although preliminary drilling was scheduled to begin in February 1927, officials of the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on Governors Island opposed the placement of a ventilation gallery on the island.[59] The tunnel authority signed contracts for the drilling in April 1938.[61] The United States Army, which held a public hearing to receive input on the tunnel proposal, gave its permission in September. 1938.[62].
The tunnel authority suggested that federal funding could be used to pay for the tunnel and that private funds could also be tapped if necessary.[61] In June 1938, the city requested a release of $70.9 million from the PWA for the construction of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel.[63] The following month, La Guardia met with PWA president Harold L. Ickes and Reconstruction Finance Corporation president Jesse H. Jones"), to convince them to help finance the tunnel because the project could now be completed in a year.[64] The city government then published a new financial plan in September 1938, where the cost of the tunnel would be increased to 77.3 million. The city could reduce its request to the PWA to 19.82 million and collect the difference by placing "Bond (Finance)" bonds and could also request 45 million from the RFC. Manhattan Borough President Stanley M. Isaacs objected to the tunnel plan because he believed the proposal would not be able to adequately expedite traffic on the Manhattan side. In response, Parks Commissioner Moses asked Isaacs to proposed a better idea to improve traffic in the city.[67] Ickes later rejected the city's request for funding from the PWA, noting that there were "enormous financial and practical obstacles" to any involvement by the PWA. These impediments included a lack of money, because although the PWA had given the city an amount for the expropriation of the Belt Parkway, the money had already been used.[68] Finally, due to the negative of the PWA, the project was temporarily suspended.[69].
Bridge proposal
In January 1939, after the failure to obtain federal funding for the tunnels, Moses (now president of the Triborough Bridge Authority) proposed the construction of a bridge at Brooklyn-Battery. He noted that building a bridge would be cheaper, faster, and more efficient than building a tunnel.[34][70] The bridge would consist of a six-lane suspension structure that would be built in 27 months, compared to the 46 months required for a tunnel. One of the other benefits, in Moses' view, was that the $41 million bridge would not require federal money.[70] Isaacs noted that a bridge could cause as much congestion as a tunnel so he did not support the plan.[71] The Tunnel Authority also opposed the Brooklyn-Battery Bridge because a bridge would decrease property values.[72] In response, Moses predicted that the authority's Queens-Midtown Tunnel would be unprofitable, and that The tunnel authority should organize its affairs before deciding to build a new tunnel.[73].
Moses was able to win support for the bridge from influential city and state politicians, including four of the five borough presidents, Mayor La Guardia, and U.S. Senator Robert F. Wagner.[74] In early March 1939, the New York City Planning Commission supported plans for the bridge at Battery,[75] and a bill to authorize the bridge was put to a vote in the state legislature.[76] The law was proposed to was voted on in the City Council, but was blocked due to concerns that the bridge's connection to East River Drive would not be able to sustain anticipated future traffic volumes.[77] The American Institute of Architects asked that the city reconsider the bridge, as it could obstruct views of the Manhattan skyline, reduce Battery Park to a minuscule size, and destroy what was then the New York Aquarium at Castle Clinton.[78] There was significant public opposition and then the City Council Committee in the State Legislature did not approve the plan.[79] In response, Moses changed the bridge plans to include landscaping work in Battery Park.[80] The Guard believed that if this revised plan was approved, Ickes could finally allow funding of the bridge project by the PWA.[81] On March 28, the City Council voted to approve the project, with 19 members in favor and 6 in favor. against.[82] Two days later, both houses of the State Legislature passed laws allowing the construction of the Brooklyn-Battery Bridge,[83][84] and Governor Herbert H. Lehman signed the laws that same week.[85][86].
Moses quickly sought to obtain the required approval from the United States War Department.[86] He also began seeking funding from both the PWA and the RFC so that the bridge could be completed in July 1941.[87] As part of the approval process, the United States Army organized a public hearing to solicit opinions on the bridge plan.[88] Seventeen civic groups formed a committee to reinforce their opposition to the bridge,[89] and the Municipal Society de Arte criticized the proposal as an act of "vandalism" towards the city's public parks.[90] Associations opposed to the project pointed out that the bridge would block naval traffic, an observation that La Guardia and Moses refuted.[91].
Finalization of plans for the tunnel
In July 1939, after the bridge plan was cancelled, the bid for the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel was resumed. In those days, the Roosevelt administration was considering relaxing the PWA requirements and lowering interest rates so that the tunnel project could access credit.[104] By November, La Guardia was managing to obtain financing for the tunnel even if it had to come from private sources.[105][106] After an interview with La Guardia, RFC president Jones announced that there were no obstacles to granting a $70 million loan for the tunnel project. The city was waiting to begin construction once it received the loan.[107][108] Plans for the tunnel were completed and submitted to federal agencies for approval that same month.[109].
The New York City Tunnel Authority announced in March 1940 that it would begin construction within forty days. Preliminary construction and land acquisition for the Brooklyn exit were already underway. The Army, which had already approved the plans, called a new hearing that was expected not to stop the permit.[110] In May, La Guardia signed a preliminary contract to begin construction.[111] Moses stated that he wanted to complete the tunnel, a crucial link in the parks system, as soon as possible.[112] The RFC gave the city $57 million for the tunnel later that same month.[113][114] Ole Singstad"), the chief engineer of the New York City Tunnel Authority was charged with designing the tunnel.[4] As a cost-saving measure, the Tunnel Authority briefly considered constructing the tunnel by excavating a trench under the East River and then covering it.[115]
In the summer of 1940, four hundred Brooklyn residents living in the area through which the tunnel was to pass were evicted.[116] On the Manhattan side, a large portion of Little Syria&action=edit&redlink=1 "Little Syria (Manhattan) (not yet redacted)"), a majority Syrian/Lebanese Christian neighborhood centered around Washington Street, was demolished to create entrance ramps to the tunnel.[117] Several of Little Syria's stores and residents moved to Atlantic Avenue "Atlantic Avenue (New York)") in Brooklyn.[118] The city ultimately spent $4 million acquiring the land.[119].
Construction begins
The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel was planned for October 8, 1940, with President Roosevelt in attendance.[120] At the time, the president was in the final weeks of his re-election campaign for the 1940 presidential election and was expected to campaign at various locations around New York City.[121] The ceremony was postponed to October 28. In it, Roosevelt highlighted the benefits of the tunnel over a bridge, while Mayor La Guardia invited the president to return for the dedication ceremony in four years.[122][123] Three days later, the city passed a motion to widen Hamilton Avenue from 80 feet to 300 feet to make room for the tunnel entrance, and also signed a contract for tunnel linings with Bethlehem Steel.[124][125].
The start of construction of the tunnel itself was postponed due to disputes between the longshoremen's union that was tasked with digging the tunnel and a civil construction workers' union that claimed that its members were the ones who should work on the project due to their specialization in building tunnels.[126][127] This disagreement escalated into a violent protest[128] and a several-day strike in February 1941.[129] The following year, some Civil construction union workers were banned from working on the project due to a disagreement with their main union.[130].
Another issue arose when it was revealed that the New York Aquarium located in Castle Clinton, in Battery Park on the Manhattan side, would have to be demolished to make room for the tunnel.[131] Consideration was given to moving the aquarium to Coney Island on the south shore of Brooklyn.[132] To speed up construction of the tunnel, the city closed the Aquarium and moved its fish to other aquariums in September 1941.[133] Moses advocated the demolition of Castle Clinton,[134] but preservationists who opposed that action asked a federal judge to grant a bond to prevent the demolition.[135] Although Moses initially succeeded in having the petition dismissed,[136] the federal government later designated the castle as a United States Historic Landmark, prohibiting its demolition.[137] The tunnel project also called for the demolition of 8000 square meters of Battery Park to build a breakwater,[138] and as a result of the shrinking area of Battery Park, an architect was hired to study the redesign of the park.[139] This led to organizing a public competition for potential redesigns of the park.[140].
In August 1940, the city made plans for two drawbridges over the Gowanus Canal as part of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel project. The U.S. Army officially approved plans for the Gowanus Canal bridge in October, just before construction of the tunnel began. The contract for the Gowanus Bridge was signed in December 1940. A contract for the park Gowanus and its approach to the tunnel and bridge was signed the following month.[144] By mid-1941, planners realized that Hicks Street, on the Brooklyn side, would also need to be widened so that traffic coming from the north could access the tunnel, since the Brooklyn entrance faced southeast.[145] By May 1942, Gowanus Park was completed between Hicks Street and Belt. Parkway*. The park also included a bridge over the , which rose 90 feet above the waterway and then descended onto .[146] Construction of the freeway extension along did not begin until 1946.[147].
Construction stops and resumes
Originally, the tunnel was expected to be completed in 1944.[120] The Guard had promised that during World War II, the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel would be prioritized over other projects due to its importance to Brooklyn's economy.[155] However, the project was not considered a major destination for the distribution of steel, so its status for receiving that material was revoked in February 1942. Although excavation work continued, the tunnel could not be completed until after the war.[156] In October 1942, Moses recommended that tunnel work stop completely to conserve steel and other metals that were needed for the war effort.[157] At that time, the War Production Board (WPB) issued an order to stop work on the Brooklyn end, although excavation on the Manhattan side was allowed to continue because that work consisted only of digging through rock. solid.[158] By the end of the month, the WPB ordered a halt to all construction work on the tunnel including those in Manhattan as well.[159] Due to opposition over the potential firing of the excavators, they were allowed to continue working until a final review of the WPB's action was conducted.[160][161] At this time, drilling from Manhattan and Brooklyn was in various stages of completion.[34].
By September 1944, war restrictions were being eased and Mayor La Guardia asked the U.S. government to allow the manufacture of the washers, nuts, and bolts needed for the construction of the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel.[162] The federal government gave its approval the following month.[162] During the war, the tunnel's galleries had been flooded, so they had to be drained before construction could continue.[163] By mid-1944 In 1945, shortly before the war ended, the Triborough Bridge Authority merged with the Tunnel Authority, resulting in the new Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) taking control of the project. Moses, the head of the TBTA, immediately fired Singstad and replaced him with TBTA chief engineer Ralph Smillie, who designed what remained of the tunnel. The WPB approved the resumption of work on the tunnel in September of that same year.[163] The TBTA advertised for bids to construct the Brooklyn toll plaza in May 1946.[166] Due to objections to the proposed design of the Manhattan ventilation building, the TBTA changed the plans so that the tower would have the appearance of a granite monument rather than a simple ventilation tower.[16].
Moses authorized the tunnel to be completed with a different method to complete its support walls. This resulted in water leaks and, according to Moses biographer Robert Caro, the TBTA solved the problem by using a design almost identical to Singstad's original. Singstad later pointed out that Smillie had caused excessive leaks by not using his experimental waterproofing design to prevent them. Smillie denied that the leaks were excessive and said that Singstad's method had been replaced because it was actually the cause of the leaks.[9].
Opening
The Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel was opened to traffic on May 25, 1950 with a ceremony officiated by Mayor William O'Dwyer). The Eagle also estimated that the tunnel cost $736 for every inch of length built. At a cost of $80 million, the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel was also the most expensive in the United States. It was so expensive that the TBTA was forced to search around the world for a company that could cover the tunnel's insurance policy, which amounted to $736. 33.5 million.[190] However, the cost was expected to be balanced, in part, by the 35-cent tolls and the time savings it allowed. Truckers at the Bush Terminal", located south of the tunnel entrance, predicted they would save 35 minutes a day and a million dollars a year driving through the tunnel.[189].
In the first five and a half hours after its opening, 10,563 cars paid tolls to use the tunnel. Forty thousand drivers used the tunnel on the first day and, at that rate, it was estimated that the tunnel would have received 14 million vehicles per year, 40% more than originally estimated. And this was despite the fact that traffic speeds were limited to 64 km/h, which reduced capacity.[190] The 1,050 parking spaces at the tunnel's northern terminus were opened to the public a little over a month after the tunnel.[25] During the first year of operation, the tunnel billed nearly $5.5 million in tolls and, according to Caro, exceeded its annual capacity of 15 million vehicles. Another Brooklyn Daily Eagle analysis found that 13.86 million vehicles had used the tunnel in its first year; This was less than Caro's estimate but higher than the TBTA's initial estimate of 10 million and some experts' estimate of 8 million.[191]
Some road infrastructure projects on both sides of the tunnel were completed shortly after its inauguration. The first associated project to be completed was the Battery Park Underpass on the Manhattan side, which opened in April 1950. Two months later, officials opened a ramp on the Brooklyn side leading from the southbound lane of the tunnel to the northbound lane of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The Battery Park Underpass was connected to the East River Drive elevated viaduct and thus to FDR Drive in May 1950. 1954.[194] The Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel project also involved the renovation of Battery Park, which reopened in 1952 after being closed for 12 years.[195].
Later years
The galleries were designed to have two lanes in each direction. This was changed in 1956, when the western Brooklyn-bound tube was changed to carry traffic in both directions during the morning rush hour due to heavy morning congestion.[196] A high-capacity northbound lane was later added during the morning rush hour. It ran from Staten Island to Manhattan via the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, the Gowanus Expressway, and the Battery Tunnel.[197] A large volume of drivers also used the garage on the Manhattan side. Consequently, plans were made in 1965 to expand the parking area.[198] The expanded beach, which was completed in 1968, had 2,126 parking spaces.[24] The city also built a new 278-space garage nearby for short-term parking.[199].
In 1957, workers performing maintenance on the tunnel noticed that the tunnel's tiled roof was leaking. Around 930 square meters of the 33,000 m² roof had corrosion problems. The TBTA repaired the roofs in 1959 at a cost of $250,000.[200]
In 1971, the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel was declared "Interstate 478" in preparation for the "Westway" project that would reconstruct the West Side Highway into the Interstate Highway System.[201] Although the project was canceled in 1985,[202][203] the designation as I-478 still exists and is contiguous to the entire tunnel. However However, there is no sign that shows its name as I-478.[204].
The tunnel was completely closed after the September 11 attacks, due to the proximity of the Manhattan approach to the World Trade Center site. Although many intersections in the city were closed after the attacks, they reopened relatively quickly, albeit with restrictions in favor of high-occupancy automobiles during rush hour.[205] The western tube was the first part of the tunnel to open, in October 2001, and carried only southbound traffic.[206] However, the West Side Highway was closed to traffic south of Canal Street (Manhattan), about 30 blocks north. north of the tunnel entrance, and part of the highway was destroyed during the attacks. As a result, authorities feared that traffic in the tunnel could back up for about 40 blocks if the freeway reopened.[207] As a result, work began to provide a temporary lane leading from the freeway to the tunnel.[208] The northbound tube, reopened in March 2002, was the last crossing into Manhattan to be returned to service.[205]
In 2010, New York State lawmakers voted to rename the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel in honor of Governor Hugh Carey. due to weather phenomena.[209] It was flooded due to severe storm surge,[210][211] but was reopened to traffic on November 13[212][213] after a cleaning process that included the drainage of an estimated volume of 330 million liters of water.[6] It was the last river crossing to reopen.[212].
Hurricane Sandy demonstrated the tunnel's vulnerability to flooding, as sea level has risen about 9 inches since its opening in 1950, and the entrances were located on low-lying terrain.[209] Subsequently, the MTA began testing inflatable dams at the tunnel's mouths.[214] In October 2017, a pair of 25-ton floodgates were installed at the entrances on the Manhattan side, which had to be accompanied. by another pair of floodgates in Brooklyn,[215] as well as a breakwater. This combined project was 63% complete according to an MTA report dated March 2018.[216] Between 2017 and 2018, paving walls in the Queens–Midtown and Brooklyn–Battery tunnels were replaced due to damage sustained during Hurricane Sandy. The newly tiled white striped walls represent the official colors of the state of New York. There was controversy regarding the cost of fixing these walls (which was $30 million) due to the crisis the city's transit system was in.[217].