NEW YORK | LaGuardia Airport Renovation

Its been a while since an update.


Credit: LaGuardia Airport

14 Likes

This will be very nice!

Between the Tappan Zee Bridge and LGA, Governor Cuomo has achieved what his predecessors failed to do.

It’s a shame that he’s friends with the Dolans and won’t pressure them to move from the worst arena in sports in order to build a new Penn Station.

It’s also a shame that Washington refuses to help NY rebuild its infrastructure. The billions that we give to Israel, Egypt, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc should be spent to build our mass transit, roads, bridges, etc., let alone the $700b spent annually on the military.

I’m grateful that I live in the US and not China, Africa, Afghanistan, etc., but this country has f…cked up priorities. Our gun culture, war culture, capital punishment system, etc., makes the idiotic claim of “American Exceptionalism” seem even more absurd. I think that the Scandinavian countries are exceptional.

13 Likes

I agree. We have the resources to turn this country into a much more transit and urban experience, yet we squander resources on countries that quite frankly will stab us in our sleep. F’d up priorities indeed.

The idea that we, the U.S., don’t even have a legit bullet train is sad. Our airports pale in comparison to some of the gems overseas. Our roads need expansion. Everyday in NJ and on the BQE its a parkinglot. Bumper to bumper, meanwhile the PATH train is a sardine can on any given morning.

4 Likes

Agreed, the amount of money that is misspent in the US is mind boggling. So much wasted potential.

2 Likes

America is like Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. It’s relatively normal when the Democratics are in power, and yet it’s totally insane when the Republicans are in charge.

4 Likes

Heard that there was studies suggesting widening highways can actually increase traffic on roads due to it prioritizing using cars over other means of transportation. But I agree with the sentiment otherwise.

3 Likes

I agree with you, Chused. I think that’s what Kevin said too.

1 Like

LGA renovation is especially bittersweet. It will look beautiful and a modern terminal B is badly needed, but so much $$ and still so far from solving so many problems. 1) Same runway configuration means LGA is not adding any real capacity and will still likely be the most delayed airport in the US 2) Ridiculous Air Train thing from Willets Points defies common sense and will not improve the commute to the airport for the vast majority of travelers and employees - any it means any chance to expand N/W train to the airport will be nixed 3) consequently Grand Central Pkwy will remain clogged 4) The M60 SBS still has no exclusive lanes in Queens and prone to getting stuck in traffic so there’s still no great mass transit option to get to LGA from Manhattan. Considering LGA has been an airport since the 1930s (??) you’d think there’d be a one-seat subway ride to the airport by now…NOPE

9 Likes

I also am a huge follower of the subway and our public transportation system. Your second point is one of my largest criticisms of the larger project. Although not surprising since Cuomo likes to wave his half-ass wand from Albany instead of actually solving long term infrastructure problems. It’s all a PR show for him.

4 Likes

Speaking of Cuomo’s infrastructure plans, I thought this was a good documentary on Thirteen:

1 Like

A lot of work has already happened w/ the LGA renovation. Sometime this year we’ll start to see the white facade and get a sense of what’ll look like.

Be sure to check out the webcam time lapse videos here: Aviation

2 Likes

If in fact Rikers Island prison is shuttered, the land should definitely go towards expanding the LGA airfield. This airport urgently needs an increase in capacity.

1 Like

Not only should Rikers be connected to LGA, but the 6 should be connected to Rikers from the Bronx.

how do you propose extending the 6 from the bronx when it goes all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge? the kind of tunnel work that would require would be obscenely expensive. IMO it would be much easier to have some sort of extension of the N/Airtrain hybrid

What does the fact that the 6 ends at Brooklyn Bridge have to do with it? What in infeasible about extending track from 138th street and having a 6 that ends at LGA?

why on earth would you have a line that branches into two different sections thereby reducing capacity on the line that continues further north (it creates headaches for people who actually ride the train, see the A train) ? that makes zero sense to me…

Is this your new argument? It depends on how dense the ridership is above 138th street vs how many riders will be going to and from LGA. After Parkchester it’s probably pretty sparse.

My point is, this isnt SimCity. Not only would a 6 line extension have to have tunnels bored under dense residential areas but also under the East River ( FYI there are 95K people per diem who use the 6 line past 138th as of 2016). That makes zero sense when you currently have an above ground line with a lesser amount of stops to Midtown that can be executed much easier than what you are suggesting. In fact, i would go further to say that an AirTrain extension can be done from the Astoria Blvd Station down the grand central directly to the front of LGA Terminals. If you want to be snarky then by all means go for it but your suggestion is just not gonna happen…

The 6 train is very overcrowded and has high ridership past Parkchester. In fact it has higher ridership in the North Bronx than in the South Bronx. It would be crazy to divert the 6 to LGA.

They’re already planning an Airtrain extension, so problem solved, more or less.

Idk about problem solved. I agree the diversion of the 6 train is unfeasible. However I’d much rather see the N/W train extended into LGA than having to ride the 7 all the way to Willets Point to catch an Airtrain. Why can’t NYC have a subway going into its airports like other major cities? Whether this route turns out to be faster than the express buses being used now remains to be seen.

2 Likes