The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) is a bi-state port district, established in 1921 (as the Port of New York Authority) through an interstate compact, that runs most of the regional transportation infrastructure, including the bridges, tunnels, airports, and seaports, within the New York–New Jersey Port District. This 1,500 square mile (3,900 km²) District is defined as a circle with a 25 mile (40 km) radius centered on the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor.
The Port Authority operates the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal, which handled the third largest amount of shipping of all ports in the United States, in 2004. The Port Authority also operates Hudson River crossings, including the Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel, and George Washington Bridge connecting New Jersey with Manhattan, and three crossings that connect New Jersey with Staten Island.
The Port Authority Bus Terminal and the PATH rail system are also run by the Port Authority, as are LaGuardia, JFK, Newark Liberty International Airport,Teterboro Airport and Stewart International Airport located near Newburgh, New York, in the southern Hudson Valley, 55 miles (88.5 km) north of New York City.. The agency has its own 1,600-member Port Authority Police Department, which is responsible for providing safety and deterring criminal activity at Port Authority–owned-and-operated facilities.
Although the Port Authority does run a good portion of the transportation structures, some bridges, tunnels, and other transportation facilities are operated independently of the Port Authority, including the Staten Island Ferry, which is operated by the New York City Department of Transportation; bridges between Manhattan and the Bronx operated by the NYCDOT; and other bridges, tunnels, operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority which is controlled by the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA); buses, subways, and commuter rail operated by the New York City Transit Authority which is controlled by the MTA; and buses, commuter rail, and light rail operated by New Jersey Transit.
History
In the early years of the 20th century, there were disputes between the states of New Jersey and New York, over rail freights and boundaries. At the time, rail lines terminated on the New Jersey side of the harbor, while ocean shipping was centered on Manhattan and Brooklyn. Freight had to be shipped across the Hudson River in barges.
In 1916, New Jersey launched a lawsuit against New York over issues of rail freight, with the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) issuing an order that the two states work together, subordinating their own interests to the public interest. The Harbor Development Commission, a joint advisory board set-up in 1917, recommended that a bi-state authority be established to oversee efficient economic development of the port district. The Port of New York Authority was established on April 30, 1921, through an interstate compact between the states of New Jersey and New York. This was the first such agency in the United States, created under a provision in the Constitution of the United States permitting interstate compacts.
The idea for the Port Authority was conceived during the Progressive Era, which aimed to reduce political corruption and aimed for efficiency in government. With the Port Authority at a distance from political pressures, it was able to carry longer-term infrastructure projects irrespective of the election cycles and in a more efficient manner. Throughout its history, there have also been concerns about democratic accountability, or lack thereof at the Port Authority.
Governance
The Port Authority is jointly headed by the governors of New York and New Jersey. Each governor, with the approval of his or her state senate, appoints six members to the Board of Commissioners, who serve overlapping six-year terms without pay. Current Commissioners are Bruce Blakeman (NY), Michael Chasanoff (NY), Anthony Coscia (Chairman, NJ), Christy Ferrer (NY), Charles Gargano (Vice Chair, NY), Angelo Genova (NJ), David Mack (NY), Ray Pocino (NJ), Anthony Sartor (NJ), Henry Silverman (NY), Jack Sinagra (NJ) and David Steiner (NJ). A governor can veto actions by the commissioners from the same state. Meetings of the Board of Commissioners are public. Members of the Board of Commissioners are typically business titans and political power brokers who maintain close relationships with their respective Governors.
Financially, the Port Authority has no power to tax and does not receive tax money from any local or state governments. Instead, it operates on the revenues it makes from its rents, tolls, fees, and facilities. An Executive Director is appointed by the Board of Commissioners to deal with day-to-day operations and to execute the Port Authority’s policies. Anthony Shorris is the current Executive Director of the Port Authority, after being nominated by former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer.
Former Executive Directors:
- Eugenius H. Outerbridge (1921-1924)
- Austin J. Tobin (1942-1972)
- William Ronan (1972-?)
- Peter C. Goldmark
- Stephen Berger
- Stan Bresnoff
- George Marlin
- Robert E. Boyle
- Neil D. Levin (2001)
- Joseph J. Seymour
- Kenneth J. Ringler, Jr.
Facilities
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey manages and maintains infrastructure critical to the New York/New Jersey region’s trade and transportation network the region’s four airports, the New York/New Jersey seaport, the PATH rail transit system, six tunnels and bridges between New York and New Jersey, the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan and The World Trade Center site.
- Seaports
The Port of New York/New Jersey is the largest port complex on the East Coast of North America and is located at the hub of the most concentrated and affluent consumer market in the world, with immediate access to the most extensive interstate highway and rail networks in the region. In addition, The Port Authority directly oversees the operation of seven cargo terminals in the New York-New Jersey region. Each terminal offers comprehensive shipping services, rail and trucking services.
The Port Authority operates the following seaports:
- Auto Marine Terminal in Bayonne and Jersey City
- Brooklyn Port Authority Marine Terminal (a combined terminal of Brooklyn Piers and Red Hook Container Terminal) in Red Hook, Brooklyn, NY
- Howland Hook Marine Terminal on Staten Island.
- Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal in Elizabeth.
The Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal was the first in the nation to containerize, As of 2004, Port Authority seaports handle the third largest amount of shipping of all U.S. ports, as measured in tonnage.
- Airports
The Port Authority operates the following airports:
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (Queens, New York)
- LaGuardia Airport (Queens, New York)
- Newark Liberty International Airport (Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey)
- Stewart International Airport, (Newburgh, New York)
- Teterboro Airport (Teterboro, New Jersey)
Both Kennedy and LaGuardia airports are owned by the City of New York and leased to the Port Authority for operating purposes. Newark Liberty is owned by Newark and also leased to the Authority. In 2007, Stewart International Airport, owned by the State of New York, was leased to the Port Authority.
- Heliports
The Authority operates the Downtown Manhattan Heliport (Manhattan, New York).
- Bridges and tunnels
Other facilities managed by the Port Authority include the Lincoln Tunnel, the Holland Tunnel, and the George Washington Bridge, which all connect Manhattan and northern New Jersey; the Goethals Bridge, the Outerbridge Crossing and the Bayonne Bridge, which connect Staten Island and New Jersey. Cash toll for passenger vehicles crossing from New Jersey to New York City is $8; there is no toll for crossing from New York to New Jersey. Discounts are available with the E-ZPass electronic toll collection system only during off-peak hours. The E-ZPass off-peak discounted toll for cars is $6. Peak hours are 6-9AM and 4-7PM on weekdays and noon-8PM on weekends. Off-peak times also include the entire 24-hour period on: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day (the former E-ZPass discount for peak hours was removed as part of the March 3, 2008 toll increase). The Port Authority owns all these bridges and tunnels.
- Bus and rail transit
The Port Authority operates the Port Authority Bus Terminal at 42nd Street and the George Washington Bridge Bus Station, the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) rapid transit system linking lower and midtown Manhattan with New Jersey, the AirTrain Newark system linking Newark International Airport with New Jersey Transit and Amtrak via a station on the Northeast Corridor rail line, and the AirTrain JFK system linking JFK with Howard Beach (Subway) and Jamaica (Subway and Long Island Rail Road).
- Real estate
The Port Authority also participates in joint development ventures around the region, including The Teleport communications center in Staten Island, Bathgate Industrial Park in The Bronx, the Essex County Resource Recovery Facility, The Legal Center in Newark, Queens West in Long Island City, NY, and The South Waterfront at Hoboken, New Jersey.
Current and Future Projects
Major projects by the Port Authority include the Freedom Tower and other construction at the World Trade Center site. Other projects include a new passenger terminal at JFK International Airport, and redevelopment of Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal B, and rehabilitation of the Goethals Bridge. The Port Authority also has plans to buy 340 new PATH rail cars and begin major expansion of Stewart International Airport.
- World Trade Center site
As owner of the World Trade Center site, the Port Authority has worked since 2001 on plans for reconstruction of the site, along with Silverstein Properties, and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. In 2006, the Port Authority reached a deal with Larry Silverstein, which ceded control of the Freedom Tower to the Port Authority. The deal gave Silverstein rights to build three towers along the eastern side of the site, including 150 Greenwich Street, 175 Greenwich Street, and 200 Greenwich Street. Also part of the plans, is the World Trade Center Transportation Hub, which will replace the temporary PATH station that opened in November 2003.
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