NYNJ Board Approves $10 Million for Planning

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Board of Commissioners on Aug. 13 authorized up to $10 million for analysis of navigational issues posed by larger ships coming in 2014 that may have difficulty fitting under the Bayonne Bridge.

Engineering services will develop options to deal with the bridge’s low clearance, which may prevent ships from passing under it to reach the Port of New York and New Jersey’s container terminals west of the bridge. The planning and engineering efforts will take approximately one to one and a half years.

Much larger containerships are expected to call on the bi-state port after the Panama Canal is expanded in 2014.

The planning efforts will supplement a Port Authority-commissioned study by the Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Coast Guard that is looking at the impacts of the bridge’s 151-foot clearance on future port trade and the national economic development benefit that would accrue by eliminating the Bayonne Bridge’s navigational obstruction.

“Our cargo business supports thousands of jobs and billions in regional economic activity, and must be protected at all costs. This initial investment will explore options to remove the shipping impediment and help preserve our port’s standing in the years ahead,” said Port Authority Chairman Anthony R. Coscia.

Contact Thomas L. Gallagher at tgallagher@joc.com.