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FAA Approves Rail Line Linking Manhattan, LaGuardia Airport


The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday issued final approval for a monorail connecting trains from Manhattan to LaGuardia Airport, giving the go-ahead for the roughly $2 billion project to pursue federal funding.

The elevated 1.5-mile (2.4-kilometer) link would connect the airport to a train stop next to Citi Field, home of the New York Mets, that is served by the Long Island Rail Road and the No. 7 subway line.

Critics had opposed the plan, saying it would negatively impact the Queens neighborhoods it traverses and wouldn’t be appreciably faster than driving.

Public and transit officials have sought for years to build a rail link to LaGuardia, which opened more than 80 years ago and remains one of the few major U.S. airports without rail service. In a preliminary report last year, the FAA said it reviewed dozens of other proposed alternatives including ferry service, improved bus service and the extension of subway service to the airport.

The monorail was the best alternative because it provides “a time-certain transportation option and supplemental access” to the airport and will reduce vehicle traffic, the FAA wrote in the document released Tuesday. The FAA also concluded the project was “reasonable to construct and operate given cost considerations” and wouldn’t affect subway or rail service during construction.

“LaGuardia Airport is the only major airport on the East Coast without a rail mass transit link, and it is way past time for that embarrassment to end,” the Port Authority said in a statement. “The LaGuardia AirTrain will provide a sustainable and reliable travel option and will remove millions of vehicles from congested highways and local roads each year.”

The Port Authority has said the project won’t require the taking of any public property. Numerous residential units, a middle school and two parks will experience noise and vibration impacts during construction, according to Tuesday’s report.

“However, with incorporation of mitigation measures and due to the temporary nature of the impact, FAA has determined the noise and vibration impacts from construction are not significant,” the report concluded.

A Port Authority study projected ridership at 17,000 people per day in 2026 and slightly over 18,000 by 2031; the FAA has estimated daily ridership at 13,000 people by 2026 and 14,000 by 2031.

Preliminary construction on supporting infrastructure is expected to begin this summer, according to the Port Authority. The project is expected to take several years to complete.

(AP)



2 Responses

  1. Why aren’t they building over the Van Wyck from Jamaica. So at that station you would have a choice to either head to JFK or LGA.

  2. “Why aren’t they building over the Van Wyck from Jamaica?”
    This was proposed and rejected 30+ years ago after public hearings. At the time, the towers supporting the line over the Van Wyck would have to be over 60 feet tall OR all the overpasses on the route would have to be raise/rebuilt so that the rail line could go underneath. Additionally, the Van Wyck route around Flushing Meadow Park is longer than a route over the Grand Central Parkway.
    Both plans were considered environmentally unsound as an elevated eyesore, politically untenable, and financially prohibitive. The review didn’t even get to the distruction of the Flushing Meadow Park and lake ecosystem.
    The compromise is the Air Train to Jamaica Station.

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