Federal Funding

TIGER II Funds Sheridan Replacement Study, Fordham Redesign

The TIGER II leaks keep coming. Here in New York, Congressman José Serrano just announced two winners of the much-sought-after federal funds (hat tip to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign on the news). $1.5 million will fund a planning study of the Sheridan Expressway area, which could provide a big boost for efforts to replace that little-used highway with housing, jobs, and parks. Another $10 million will go toward the redesign of Fordham Plaza, one of the most important spaces for transit and pedestrians in the city.

By Noah Kazis

3:40 PM EDT on October 15, 2010

With an official vision for what could replace the Sheridan Expressway -- this rendering came from the community __ -- teardown advocates stand a much better chance.

The Sheridan study could advance highway teardown plans by taking the blinkers off the state DOT’s analysis. In deciding whether to rehab the highway or decommission it, the agency is putting a finger on the scales by refusing to consider the positive benefits of whatever might replace the highway. It’s only comparing a Sheridan that carries traffic to a Sheridan that carries no traffic — and who wants a blocked-off highway?

Thanks to the TIGER grant, there may soon be an officially sanctioned vision for the area’s future, and the hope of replacing the neighborhood-sapping expressway is much brighter.

“We are eager to remake this area into a livable, walkable and green section of our community, and this is the first step towards achieving that goal,” Serrano said in his press release.

The funding for the Fordham project is also an exciting development for livable streets. With the third-busiest Metro-North station in the system, eight bus lines, and more foot traffic than Penn Station, Fordham Plaza has the potential to be one of New York City’s great public spaces. However, poor design means it’s also home to the third-deadliest intersection in the city. The proposed redesign would not only improve safety at Fordham, it would create 15,750 square feet of new pedestrian space and speed buses along as well.

We’re looking into whether any of New York’s other TIGER II applications earned a nod from US DOT.

Noah Kazis

Noah joined Streetsblog as a New York City reporter at the start of 2010. When he was a kid, he collected subway paraphernalia in a Vignelli-map shoebox. Before coming to Streetsblog, he blogged at TheCityFix DC and worked as a field organizer for the Obama campaign in Toledo, Ohio. Noah graduated from Yale University, where he wrote his senior thesis on the class politics of transportation reform in New York City. He lives in Morningside Heights.

Federal Funding | The Bronx | U.S. DOT

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.