CITY OF NEW YORK
MANHATTAN COMMUNITY BOARD FOUR
330 West 42nd Street, 26th floor New York, NY 10036 tel: 212-736-4536 fax: 212-947-9512 www.nyc.gov/mcb4 BURT LAZARIN Chair
JESSE R. BODINE District Manager
July 31, 2019
Thomas Chan
Chief of Transportation NYPD
DistrictOne PoliceManager Plaza New York, NY 10007
Michael Lavery The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 4 World Trade Center 150 Greenwich Street, 24th Floor New York, NY 10007
Re: Lincoln Tunnel Gridlock – Safety and Air Quality
Dear Chief Chan and Mr. Lavery,
For over a decade, the Hell’s Kitchen community has requested (in letters and in its Statement of District Needs) officers to direct traffic and enforce no gridlock at various intersections along Ninth Avenue. At its July 24th Full Board meeting, Manhattan Community Board 4 (MCB4) voted by 35 in favor, 0 against, 0 abstaining, and 0 present but not eligible to vote, to ask the same for Eleventh Avenue where some of the same behavior of blocking the intersections is being observed. We request a meeting with NYPD, Port Authority and our council members to find a permanent solution to this endemic problem.
With the increase in tunnel congestion, we require permanent agents at Ninth Avenue and West 37th, West 38th and West 39th Streets and at Eleventh Avenue at West 44th, West 45th and West 47th Streets at PM peak hours, on weekdays and weekends.
During the recent blackout, fire trucks coming from the fire station on West 38th Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues were blocked at the intersection by the queues of tunnel-bound vehicles. The fire department, which was on rescue missions for people stuck in elevators, used their sirens with very little success. This has become a regular occurrence.
The traffic agents we had requested at West 40th and West 41st Streets and Ninth Avenue were appointed, showed up a few times, but did not remain at these locations.
Gridlock is one of the most negative impacts the Lincoln Tunnel operation has on our community. It increases cross-streets congestion and causes hours of idling, honking, and sirens, affecting our quality of life.
This problem can and should be addressed immediately.
Sincerely,
Burt Lazarin Chair Manhattan Community Board 4
Christine Berthet Dale Corvino Co-Chair Co-Chair Transportation Planning Committee Transportation Planning Committee
CC: Hon. Corey Johnson, New York City Council Speaker