New York State Department of Transportation Governmental Relations Division Westway Trade-in Files B1919

New York State Department of Transportation Governmental Relations Division Westway Trade-in Files

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Overview of the Records

Repository:

New York State Archives
New York State Education Department
Cultural Education Center
Albany, NY 12230

Summary:

The Westway was a transportation project conceived and planned in part by Governor Nelson Rockefeller's administration as a replacement for the elevated West Side Highway on the west side of Lower Manhattan, New York City. This series documents the Westway trade-in, a plan in which the funds allocated for the Westway project were divided between the Route 9A project and the New York City Transit Authority. Records include reports, correspondence, and planning material.

Creator:

New York (State). Department of Transportation. Governmental Relations Division

Title:

New York State Department of Transportation Governmental Relations Division Westway trade-in files

Quantity:

3 cubic feet

Inclusive Dates:

[circa 1980-1995]

Series Number:

B1919

Arrangement

B1919-06: No apparent arrangement.

Administrative History

The Westway was a transportation project conceived and planned in part by the administration of Governor Nelson Rockefeller as a replacement for the elevated West Side Highway on the west side of Lower Manhattan, New York City. The West Side Highway, which was built in the 1940s,was badly deteriorated by the earlier 1970s. After a sixty-foot section of the highway collapsed on December 16, 1973 under a cement truck that was dispatched to make repairs, the road was closed and an estimate of $88 million was made for the New York City Dept. of Transportation to rebuild the highway. Instead, the Rockefeller administration envisioned using matching federal funds to create the Westway project.

This project would replace the entire West Side Highway; create a modern, divided, high speed tunnel; and replace derelict railway yards and piers on the Lower West Side with green space larger than Central Park. The Westway project was never completed as originally envisioned. The elevated highway was demolished and replaced by the new West Side Highway (also known as the Route 9A project or the Interstate 478 project); some additional green space was created along the right-of-way; and some of the remaining funds were transferred to the New York City Transit Authority.

Scope and Content Note

These records document the Westway trade-in, a plan in which the funds allocated for the Westway project were divided between the Route 9A project and the New York City Transit Authority for mass transit. Types of records include reports, correspondence, and planning material.