More than a decade after Hurricane Sandy inundated it with 30 million gallons of brackish water, the Holland Tunnel under the Hudson River is being overhauled to redirect traffic away from New York City for nearly three years.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced on Tuesday that it will close the northern tunnel to New Jersey six nights a week, beginning February 5. The overnight shutdown will last until 2025, the Port Authority said.
Drivers will have to choose other routes out of Manhattan from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday through Thursday night and from 11:59 p.m. Friday to 9 a.m. Saturday. A similar overnight shutdown schedule has been in place for traffic going to New York at the 95-year-old tunnel since April 2020. That work is scheduled to end on February 4.
Drivers heading to New Jersey will have to divert to one of the other intersections operated by the Port Authority, such as the Lincoln Tunnel or the George Washington Bridge. Bulk shipping alternatives include the Port Authority’s PATH vessel.
While the tunnel is closed, workers will carry out extensive repairs to parts damaged by flooding caused by the 2012 hurricane. The Port Authority, which owns the 1.6-mile tunnel, said know the work will include repairing or replacing mechanical, electrical, communications and plumbing systems damaged by salt left over from the flood.
Many architectural and structural elements of the tunnel infrastructure will also be repaired. Those include safety walkways and walls, curbside drainage, structural steel, wall tiles, granite retaining walls, pump rooms, exhaust pipes, cables and systems, the agency said. detection and fire fighting.
The Port Authority, which estimates that the renovation of the tunnel will cost $364 million, increased tolls at Holland and five other intersections between New Jersey and the city on January 1. The undiscounted toll has increased. from 1 USD to 17 USD/car.
Sandy did similar damage to a 112-year-old train tunnel beneath the Hudson River. The tunnel’s owner, Amtrak, had warned for years that prolonged corrosion from flooding would eventually render the tunnel inoperable. One goal of the current project, which is to build a $16.1 billion rail tunnel under the river, called the Gateway, is to provide an alternative passage for trains before Amtrak shuts down for a while. in existing railway pipelines for restoration.
