Shared-Use Access Study Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................................. I INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................................... I SHARED-USE ACCESS ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED ..................................................................................................... I FINDINGS ............................................................................................................................................................. II NEXT STEPS ........................................................................................................................................................ III 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 OVERVIEW ......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 ORGANIZATION OF REPORT .................................................................................................................. 2 2 VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE BACKGROUND AND EXISTING CONDITIONS ................................ 3 2.1 OVERVIEW ......................................................................................................................................... 3 2.2 BROOKLYN VNB APPROACH ................................................................................................................ 5 2.3 STATEN ISLAND VNB APPROACH .......................................................................................................... 5 2.4 BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES NEAR THE VNB ............................................................................... 5 2.4.1 Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities in Brooklyn ...................................................................................... 5 2.4.2 Bicycle and Pedestrian Facilities in Staten Island ............................................................................... 8 2.5 CURRENT AND PLANNED CAPITAL INVESTMENTS ................................................................................... 10 3 VERRAZANO-NARROWS BRIDGE MASTER PLAN ........................................................................... 12 3.1 MASTER PLAN GOALS AND OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................... 12 3.2 MASTER PLAN PROJECTS ................................................................................................................... 13 3.3 UPPER LEVEL APPROACHES ................................................................................................................ 14 3.3.1 Phase 1 .......................................................................................................................................... 15 3.3.2 Phase 2 .......................................................................................................................................... 15 3.3.3 Phase 3 .......................................................................................................................................... 16 3.4 LOWER LEVEL SUSPENDED SPAN DECK REPLACEMENT ............................................................................ 17 3.5 PROJECT STAGING ............................................................................................................................ 18 3.6 OPPORTUNITY FOR SHARED-USE PATHS .............................................................................................. 18 4 SHARED-USE ACCESS FEASIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS .................................................................. 20 4.1 SHARED-USE ACCESS GOALS .............................................................................................................. 20 4.2 SHARED-USE PATH REQUIREMENTS ..................................................................................................... 20 4.3 SHARED-USE PATH DESIGN STANDARDS .............................................................................................. 21 4.4 SHARED-USE PATH ENGINEERING/FEASIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS............................................................. 22 5 SHARED-USE ACCESS CONCEPTS .................................................................................................. 24 5.1 CATEGORY: OUTBOARD OF SUPERSTRUCTURE ...................................................................................... 24 5.1.1 Outboard of Lower Level ................................................................................................................. 24 5.1.2 Outboard of Lower Level-Brooklyn Approach in John J. Carty Park ................................................... 28 5.1.3 Outboard of Upper Level ................................................................................................................. 32 5.1.4 Reconstructed Brooklyn Upper Level Approach – Belt Parkway Ramps .............................................. 37 5.1.5 Eastbound Gowanus Expressway Approach to 92nd Street................................................................ 39 5.1.6 Eastbound Upper Level Exit to the Belt Parkway .............................................................................. 42 5.2 CATEGORY: CONCEPTS THAT WOULD NOT AFFECT THE VNB’S SUSPENDED SPAN ..................................... 44 5.2.1 Separate Bicycle/Pedestrian Crossing of the Narrows ....................................................................... 44 VN-84 / August 2018 i Shared-Use Access Study 5.2.2 New Ferry Service ........................................................................................................................... 46 6 CAPITAL COST ESTIMATE .............................................................................................................. 54 6.1 OUTBOARD OF LOWER LEVEL ............................................................................................................. 54 6.2 OUTBOARD OF LOWER LEVEL- BROOKLYN APPROACH IN JOHN J. CARTY PARK .......................................... 57 6.3 OUTBOARD OF UPPER LEVEL .............................................................................................................. 57 6.4 SEPARATE BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN CROSSING OF THE NARROWS ................................................................ 58 6.5 NEW FERRY SERVICE ......................................................................................................................... 58 7 STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT ...................................................................................................... 60 7.1 MEETINGS WITH STAKEHOLDERS ......................................................................................................... 60 7.2 FEEDBACK ON STATE OF GOOD REPAIR PROJECTS ................................................................................. 62 7.3 FEEDBACK ON SHARED-USE ACCESS .................................................................................................... 63 7.4 FOCUS GROUPS ................................................................................................................................ 64 7.4.1 Pedestrian/Bike Use ........................................................................................................................ 64 7.4.2 Shared-Use Path Knowledge ........................................................................................................... 64 7.4.3 Reactions to Shared-Use Path Information ...................................................................................... 65 7.4.4 Alternative Ways of Spending Money .............................................................................................. 66 7.4.5 Alternative Shared-Use Access Concepts ......................................................................................... 67 7.5 ONLINE SURVEY ............................................................................................................................... 68 8 ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW STRATEGY .......................................................................................... 70 8.1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCREENING SUMMARY .............................................................................................. 70 8.2 CONSTRUCTION IN PARKLAND ............................................................................................................ 70 8.3 NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT (NEPA) REQUIREMENTS .......................................................... 70 8.4 SECTION 106 OF THE NATIONAL HISTORIC PRESERVATION ACT ................................................................. 71 8.5 SECTION 4(F) OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ACT OF 1966 .................................................... 71 8.6 STATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY REVIEW ACT (SEQRA) APPLICABILITY ................................................... 71 8.7 BUNDLING OF PROJECTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW .......................................................................... 71 9 CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS .................................................................................................... 73 ii August 2018 / VN-84 Shared-Use Access Study Tables TABLE 3-1: LOWER LEVEL SUSPENDED SPAN DECK REPLACEMENT TIMELINE ............................................................