Goethals Bridge history

The railroad was first planned in 1873 to link the major railroad stations in New Jersey with New York City.

Fearing loss of independence and profits, though, the railroads blocked that move. Its primary goal in the beginning was to resolve the question of freight rates that in 1911 had precipitated the authority's formation.

In early 1917 he was able to convince politicians in New York and New Jersey to form a bistate commission to find a way to resolve their differences over the port.

On Saturday, April 30, 1921, the nation's first large public authority was signed into being.

Finally in 1924 Silzer and Ammann were able to persuade the Port Authority to build two smaller automobile bridges joining New Jersey to Staten Island, which would become the Outerbridge Crossing and the Goethals Bridge.

The building of the George Washington Bridge allowed the Port Authority to argue successfully that it should be allowed to build a midtown tunnel to New Jersey and to take over the Holland Tunnel, which opened in 1927, years behind schedule and well over budget.

The Goethals Bridge opened on June 29, 1928, the same day as the Outerbridge Crossing.

1930: Port Authority takes over the operation of Holland Tunnel.

They include, ironically, one of the world’s models for such undertakings, the Tennessee Valley Authority, established in 1933.

In 1935 the titles were changed to Police Officer and Sergeant.

The new midtown tunnel, named the Lincoln Tunnel, would open in 1937 and add even more cash flow to the agency.

Rather than simply give the airports away, however, the city chose to lease them to the Port Authority, provided the agency agreed to develop and operate the facilities on a self-supporting basis. It soon became the busiest airport in the country, but was eclipsed in 1939 by a new airport built in the borough of Queens by Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia.

The Port Authority also became involved with buses when in 1944 New York City requested that the Port Authority build a midtown bus terminal.

By 1945 Newark was asking to Port Authority to take over the operations of its airport.

1947: Port Authority takes over New York's two airports.

In 1948 the Port Authority assumed responsibility to operate Port Newark.

In 1949 the Port Authority added to its aviation portfolio by purchasing the small Teterboro Airport in the New Jersey Meadowlands.

In 1950, the Port Authority opened a its midtown bus terminal to serve commuters.

By 1951, Port Newark had become a modern terminal with 21 berths and a deepened 35-foot channel able to accommodate the largest ships.

The Port Authority then became involved in the revolutionary practice of containerization, which was introduced at Port Newark in 1956.

In 1949 the Port Authority added to its aviation portfolio by purchasing the small Teterboro Airport in the New Jersey Meadowlands. It opened a Heliport in lower Manhattan in 1960.

In 1962 the Port Authority established a standard when it opened the world's first all-container port facility, the Elizabeth-Port Authority Marine Terminal.

Finally in 1963 Greyhound gave up its 34th Street facility, as well as one on 50th Street, and began using the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

The original World Trade Center opened on April 4, 1973, creating a new, downtown financial center.

In 1995 George Marlin became executive director of the Port Authority and began instituting cost-savings measures that included budget cuts and layoffs.

After significant redevelopment, including $4 million for dredging, the Port Authority reopened Howland Hook in 1996.

First published on April 17, 1998 as part of the "Big Town" series on old New York.

In 2000, the Port Authority's cumulative investment in facilities and infrastructure totaled $35 billion.

The 37 Port Authority police officers killed on September 11, 2001, is the single, largest loss of police officers in the history of American law enforcement.

In 2010, the Port of New York and New Jersey purchased the terminal and announced that the iconic Bayonne Bridge adjacent to the facility would be raised—a world's first.

The cornerstone of the new World Trade Center, One World Trade Center, opened on November 3, 2014.

In 2020 the Port of New York and New Jersey handled cargo containers valued at nearly $200 billion.

Flanagan, Richard M. "Port Authority of New York and New Jersey ." Dictionary of American History. . Retrieved April 15, 2021 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/port-authority-new-york-and-new-jersey