Passenger Transport - 11/21/2014

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) recently unveiled the Fulton Center, located on Broadway in Lower Manhattan, a modern public transit and retail hub that integrates five subway stations serving eight subway lines with a ninth accessible through a new 350-foot-long pedestrian tunnel, with additional connections to Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corporation (PATH) commuter rail to follow as additional projects in the area are completed.

“This building stands as a testament to the strength and resilience New York showed on 9/11 [Sept. 11, 2001] and every day since. And it stands as a testament to what smart investments in infrastructure can do to improve a city, a state, and even a nation,” said MTA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Thomas F. Prendergast during the Nov. 9 opening ceremony. “It shows what we can do for our customers and our region when we invest in transit, and it shows New York is still thinking big and building big.”

FTA Acting Administrator Therese McMillan called the opening “a great day for New York as we celebrate the opening of the second largest transportation project in Lower Manhattan in the post-9/11 era.”

She continued, “The future of New York as a sustainable, livable city and vibrant economic center largely depends on our ability to build and maintain a modern, regional transportation network that works for everyone—and this is an important step toward that goal.”

MTA New York City Transit President Carmen Bianco added: “This new transit hub will go a long way toward enhancing the travel experience of hundreds of thousands of customers. They will finally benefit from a thoughtful design that vastly improves passenger flow throughout the station, minimizes congestion. … It’s a hub built in the 21st century for the 21st century and beyond.”

The Fulton Center complex features the glass and steel Fulton Building, the 125-year-old Corbin Building (being restored as part of construction), the Dey Street Head House, and the concourse under Dey Street that will connect to the future World Trade Center PATH Station. Its centerpiece is a 53-foot-diameter glass oculus over an atrium, which houses a suspended, integrated artwork of steel and aluminum, “Sky Reflector-Net. ”

Overall, the development includes 66,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, some 60,000 square feet of public areas, and 63,000 square feet of mechanical and other “back-of-house” space.

Approximately $847 million—primary funding for the $1.4 billion project—came from a special congressional appropriation granted after Sept. 11, 2001. Known as the Lower Manhattan Recovery Grants, those funds were intended for local public transit agencies to repair, replace, and enhance transportation infrastructure in the area. MTA provided $130 million in local funds, and the project also received the largest single award among FTA’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants, $423 million.

The Fulton Center is in the process of qualifying for LEED certification. Environment-friendly features reduced potable water use by 30 percent and energy demand by 25 percent compared to a building of a similar type. More than 20 percent of materials used in construction were sourced locally and made of recycled content.

Fulton Center has received numerous accolades, including a commendation from the 2014 Brunel Awards, which recognizes excellence in rail architecture and design—the only project in the U.S. to receive such recognition.