Work on “Segment 2” of the West Street Promenade gets underway in mid-May 2007, bringing welcome traffic and utility improvements to the boulevard, along with open pedestrian plazas and green spaces.

The New York State Department of Transportation (SDOT) is executing the $189 million project, which extends the design of Promenade South to the area between West Thames and Chambers Street.

One of SDOT’s primary goals for the project is restoring West Street to eight traffic lanes, as it was before September 11, 2001. Crews also will raise the road grade approximately six feet between Liberty and Vesey Streets, to match the higher elevation of the World Trade Center (WTC) -- a vital part of linking the open promenade to the WTC Memorial plaza.

To enhance pedestrian safety, the work scope will improve crossings at grade along West Street and modify the Liberty and Rector Street bridges. The project also includes the removal of the temporary Vesey Street bridge in early 2009.

Other enhancements include updating underground utilities and other infrastructure, installing new roadway and sidewalk pavement, and incorporating new “urban design features” like a tree-lined promenade along West Street’s sidewalks and in the median, as well as new storefronts and pedestrian plazas.

SDOT also will modify the approach to the West Street Underpass that links to the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, making the tube reversible to accommodate rush-hour traffic.

In Battery Park City, the park located between West Thames and Albany Streets will be renovated, providing more room for community gardens and a basketball court.

SDOT planners are working closely with the Port Authority and the WTC Memorial Foundation to build the “new” West Street. In particular, the teams are coordinating construction of the underground pedestrian concourse that will connect the WTC Transportation Hub with the World Financial Center/Winter Garden. Excavation for that concourse already is underway in Battery Park City.

Close coordination also is taking place for the creation of the new Vehicular Security Center at the WTC’s southwest corner. Other adjacent projects are factoring into the construction plan as well, with the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center (LMCCC) overseeing their coordination. The LMCCC also is helping SDOT adhere to environmental performance commitments during the project.

Segment 2 work will take place in four stages: West Thames to Albany Street, Albany to Vesey Street, Vesey to Murray Street, and Murray to Chambers Street. Three lanes of traffic in each direction will be maintained during daily rush hours throughout the project but will be reduced to two lanes each way midday (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and over nights and weekends.

It is also expected that SDOT’s contractor, Tully Construction, will have to temporarily shift traffic lanes and sidewalks during the project. However, advance community notification, signage, and detours are key parts of the construction program. To help alleviate traffic congestion, SDOT will assign traffic enforcement agents and maintain six lanes of traffic and the West Street bikeway/walkway at all times.

The project is expected to be substantially complete by the middle of 2009, with its official completion scheduled for the end of 2009.

Related links

Project Update: West Street Promenade Segment 2
Visualization Tour