Crains New York - April 1, 2013 - (Page 11)

BOB PREVIDI A different track for Penn Station P enn Station is by far the busiest transportation facility in the nation. It moves 500,000 passengers per day, twice as many as the world’s busiest airport, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International. Still, there is a need to increase mass-transit capacity into Penn Station, which is why Amtrak has been looking to build a dualtrack train tunnel under the Hudson River. Unfortunately, finding the $15 billion or so for Amtrak’s Gateway project has proved difficult. But there is a way to spend roughly half as much while still doubling rush-hour train traffic. It involves taking a regional approach in how we use Penn Station. Today, many Long Island Rail Road and NJ Transit trains terminate at Penn Station by discharging their passengers, loading more passengers and heading back in the direction they came from.This causes too many at-grade movements (where trains cut across each other’s path) within the station.It slows everything down, limiting service and inconveniencing pass-through passengers. If trains simply kept going in the direction they came from—with NJ Transit trains continuing to Long Island and LIRR trains along New Jer- sey routes—we could streamline operations and expand the number of destinations each railroad serves. For example, NJ Transit customers could reach JFK airport, Citi Field and the U.S. Open tennis tournament, while Long Islanders would be able to reach Newark Liberty airport, MetLife Stadium and the Prudential Center. Achieving this would require changing equipment and updating operating procedures, but this concept is not new or radical. It’s been done in the U.S. and around the globe, including in London and Paris. Heck, even Philadelphia did it: Way back in 1984, the old Reading Terminal and Suburban Station were combined into the Center City Commuter Tunnel. New York City should not be April will be a tricky month for city pols R eliable sources tell me that in the next month: ⅷ Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Gov. Andrew Cuomo will announce that they have ordered all their staffers working on recovery from Superstorm Sandy to move to vacant space in a downtown office building, where they will all work under a single czar to be appointed jointly in the next month. ⅷ Mr. Bloomberg will say he agrees with complaints that he is spending too much time on activities beyond his job and will henceforth devote Monday, Wednesday and Friday and half of Saturday to city affairs. He will promise to abstain from weekend trips to Bermuda, at least until November, and that he will let the press know where he is on Saturday and Sunday. ⅷ Mr. Cuomo will concede that the secrecy involved in the extension of the millionaires’ tax was a mistake and will force the Legislature to pass a bill establishing a tax-reform commission whose recommendations would take effect unless both houses of the Legislature rejected them and the governor agreed. ⅷ Mr. Bloomberg will admit he has left a budget problem for his successor,saying,“What else is new? Mayor Koch did that to David GREG DAVID Dinkins, Dinkins to Rudy Giuliani, and Giuliani to me.” ⅷ The four Democratic candidates for mayor will confess that their concern for small business is merely campaign rhetoric, given their support for bills to allow lawyers to sue three decades behind Philadelphia. Adopting this approach for Penn Station would take advantage of the LIRR West Side Yard’s proximity to the station, allowing us to meet capacity goals with a new single-track tunnel at half the cost of Gateway. Amazingly, nobody has ever seriously demanded that the railroads (Amtrak,NJT or LIRR) rethink how they use Penn Station in a way that would reduce the capital expense of doubling Hudson River capacity. If we are concerned about what we can afford—and how we can leave some funds to fix the existing station— then New York’s and New Jersey’s elected officials should insist that the agencies find a way to make better use of the existing track, tunnels and yards that support Penn Station. On a recent visit to Germany, I took an Intercity-Express train to Frankfurt from Mannheim. My return trip, while booked on ICE, was actually a French TGV train headed for Paris. If trains can operate this way between France and Germany, surely we can commingle NJT and LIRR service across the Hudson to save $7 billion. Maybe Madison Square Garden will move someday; maybe it won’t. No matter what we decide, we need to expand capacity for trains under the Hudson as well as fix the way Penn Station greets travelers, and do so in a way that makes sense financially for taxpayers and the riding public. Buy Tickets Online AutoShowNY.com Save on combo tickets with LIRR and Metro North at MTA.com NY Waterway combo tickets also available at AutoShowNY.com RECORDED INFO: 800-282-3336 For security purposes, NO backpacks allowed. Random security and bag checks. An activity of the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association. Bob Previdi is a career public transportation professional. companies that are believed to discriminate against the unemployed and to impose paid sick leave on even the smallest firms. Instead, they will note that the city’s economy is so strong that the companies should be able to shoulder these new burdens and thrive. If the firms can’t, others will take their place. ⅷ Republican Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos will acknowledge to business leaders that while he needs their campaign contributions to keep enough seats to be a force, he won’t stand up for their interests against the power of Mr. Cuomo. ⅷ All the candidates for mayor will acknowledge that they know that no city in America imposes higher and more burdensome taxes on its residents and businesses than New York. They will promise to require an Independent Budget Office assessment of the economic damage from any increases they propose. ⅷ A state Supreme Court judge reviewing the city’s prevailing-wage law will rule that the City Council does not have the power to regulate wages or benefits for the private sector—ending the debate over the living-wage and sick-leave bills. ⅷ All the mayoral candidates will rule out retroactive raises for city workers,which could blow a $10 billion hole in the budget, and say any future raises must be paid for with concessions on benefits and work rules. Oh, in case you forgot, today is April 1. FOR SALE Condominium Units and Boat Slips at Ocean Place on the Harbour, Paradise Island, Bahamas 50 condominium units at Ocean Place on the Harbour on Paradise Island, Bahamas are available for sale on an en bloc basis. In addition, licences for 17 boat slips at an adjacent marina are separately available for sale on an en bloc basis. With breathtaking views, the units are at various stages of interior completion. Completed units feature top of the line ﬁnishings while boat slips range in size from 45’ to 120’. The condominium units and boat slip licences are being offered under a power of sale by the secured lender. Preference is for an all cash transaction but proposals involving deferred or contingent consideration will also be considered. Interested parties should contact the following representatives of the Joint Receivers and Managers for additional information: Charlene Lewis-Small KPMG Restructuring Ltd. PO Box N 123 5th Floor, Montague Sterling Centre East Bay Street Nassau, Bahamas Telephone: 242-394-9951 Email: clewis@kpmg.com.bs Bradley Butcher KPMG Inc. 333 Bay Street Suite 4600 Toronto, Canada M5H 2S5 Telephone: 416-777-3819 Email: bbutcher@kpmg.ca April 1, 2013 | Crain’s New York Business | 11 http://www.MTA.com http://www.AutoShowNY.com http://www.AutoShowNY.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - April 1, 2013

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
OPINION
BOB PREVIDI
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
HEALTH CARE REPORT
CLASSIFIEDS
SMALL BUSINESS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crains New York - April 1, 2013