New York City’s plans to develop the Far West Side (FWS) of midtown Manhattan, the area roughly bounded by Eighth Avenue, 42nd Street, 30th Street and the Hudson River, represent the potential for a major expansion to the region’s Central Business District (CBD).
The plan calls for 28 million square foot of new office development, 12,000 new units of housing, expanded convention, retail and hotel space, and a new football stadium/convention space. There is widespread recognition that major investments in transportation access are the key to redeveloping the area. There is less appreciation that the realization of this plan, or even a substantial portion of it, would have major implications for the entire transportation network that serves the Manhattan CBD. Much of this network - subway lines, commuter railroads, transportation hubs, auto crossings and streets - is at or near capacity. With the potential for over 100,000 new office workers, 25,000 new residents and increases in visitors, tourists and shoppers, the development will put additional strains on this system with more people entering Manhattan from all directions. Therefore, analysis of the transportation implications for the Far West Side must not be limited to the capacity improvements needed to reach the district. It must also include an assessment of the how the district will affect capacity and mobility throughout the system.
Because the pace and mix of development on the Far West Side (FWS) is uncertain, this report posits a number of development scenarios and tests how well a variety of proposed transportation projects, either in isolation or in combination would meet the travel demand generated by each scenario and the burden it would impose on the transportation system.
