128-587: The Midtown Tunnel may refer to: Queens-Midtown Tunnel , a tunnel in New York City linking the boroughs of Queens and Manhattan Midtown Tunnel (Virginia) , a tunnel in Virginia linking the cities of Portsmouth and Norfolk See also [ edit ] Midtown (disambiguation) Tunnel (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with
256-645: A bridge or a tunnel. The city began conducting a study on the feasibility of constructing the Triborough Tunnel, as well as the Triborough Bridge between Queens, Manhattan, and the Bronx . The study's authors suggested that the city construct a network of parkways and expressways, including a major highway leading from Long Island to the Manhattan-Queens tunnel. The Queens Planning Commission also recommended
384-576: A ceremony on December 31, 1936, and four months later, the city bought the entire city block surrounding the shaft was located. The first $ 500,000 allocation of PWA funding was released in January 1937. A 40-foot-deep (12 m) layer of clay was placed at the bottom of the East River, atop the tunnel's path, to prevent air leakages and to maintain air pressure within the tubes. This "blanket" contained about 250,000 cubic yards (190,000 m ) of clay. This
512-539: A city in 1870, Long Island City was originally the seat of government of the Town of Newtown , before becoming part of the City of Greater New York in 1898. In the early 21st century, Long Island City became known for its rapid and ongoing residential growth and gentrification , its waterfront parks, and its thriving arts community. The area has a high concentration of art galleries, art institutions, and studio space. Long Island City
640-414: A college education or higher, while 16% have less than a high school education and 33% are high school graduates or have some college education. In Community Board 2, 45% of residents age 25 and older have a college education or higher, 19% have less than a high school education and 35% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 39% of Queens residents and 43% of city residents have
768-466: A college education or higher. The percentage of Community Board 1 students excelling in math rose from 43 percent in 2000 to 65 percent in 2011, and reading achievement rose from 47% to 49% during the same time period. Similarly, the percentage of Community Board 2 students excelling in math rose from 40% in to 65%, and reading achievement rose from 45% to 49%, during the same time period. Long Island City's rate of elementary school student absenteeism
896-643: A combined $ 58.4 million, from the Public Works Administration (PWA) that September. Two months later, the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) offered to lend $ 47.1 million of the tunnel's cost if the PWA granted the remaining $ 11.3 million balance. In response to the RFC's offer, PWA chairman Harold L. Ickes stated that his agency had $ 32.7 million readily available for the construction of
1024-569: A commercial rooftop farm run by Brooklyn Grange . High-rise housing is being built on a former Pepsi-Cola site on the East River. From June 2002 to September 2004, the former Swingline Staplers plant was the temporary headquarters of the Museum of Modern Art . Other former factories in Long Island City include Fisher Electronics , Marantz and Chiclets Gum. Long Island City's turn-of-the-century district of residential towers, called Queens West,
1152-476: A commission to study traffic congestion on New York City bridges and tunnels. Local civic groups felt that it would be inadequate to simply increase capacity on existing crossings like the Queensboro Bridge , since there were no roads connecting Long Island with Midtown Manhattan. The city ultimately declined to give its immediate support to the Triborough Tunnel proposal. In April 1927, civic groups formed
1280-664: A corresponding limited-access expressway on the Manhattan side, connecting to the Lincoln Tunnel, was still undecided. The Manhattan entrance and exit ramps eliminated the St. Gabriel Church , which was later replaced by construction of the Church of Our Saviour on Park Avenue . By early 1938, costs were rising quickly, and only 65% of the contracts had been awarded. Tunnel Authority Commissioner Friedman stated that if costs were to keep increasing at
1408-434: A half-block, where it splits into three exit ramps. One ramp continues westbound to 37th Street, while the other two connect to Tunnel Exit Street , which runs south to 34th Street and north to 41st Street. The northernmost block of Tunnel Exit Street, between 40th and 41st Streets, was sold to private interests in 1961 but continues to be in public use. The southern tube rises to ground level east of Second Avenue, where it
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#17328479749131536-592: A high air pressure, each man worked two 30-minute shifts per day, punctuated by a 6-hour break in a depressurized chamber so that they would not get decompression sickness . On the Queens side, it was proposed to link the tunnel to what is now I-495. Eventually, officials agreed to construct the 2.5-mile (4.0 km) link to what is now the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, forming part of a longer highway that connected directly to LaGuardia Airport . The status of
1664-686: A high population of residents who are uninsured . In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 12% in Community Board 1 and 16% in Community Board 2, compared to the citywide rate of 12%. The concentration of fine particulate matter , the deadliest type of air pollutant , is 0.0078 milligrams per cubic metre (7.8 × 10 oz/cu ft) in northern Long Island City and 0.0093 milligrams per cubic metre (9.3 × 10 oz/cu ft) in southern Long Island City. Nineteen percent of Community Board 1 residents and fourteen percent of Community Board 2 residents are smokers , compared to
1792-479: A manufacturing site producing items like distributor caps, was once located in the industrial neighborhood of Long Island City until purchased by Acuman Partners in 2008 for $ 40 million. The Standard Motor Products Building was put on the market by Acuman in 2014 and acquired by RXR Realty, LLC for $ 110 million. The former factory built in 1919 now houses the Jim Henson Company , Society Awards , and
1920-400: A margin of error of less than 0.5 inches (13 mm). In January 1940, another construction milestone was reached when the last of 1,622 metal rings were installed in the tubes. The fans were being installed in the ventilation buildings, and property at the Queens portal was being demolished to make way for the tunnel approaches. By May 1940, only three contracts remained to be awarded, and
2048-573: A portable machine that gave out pure oxygen. Despite the precautions taken to avoid sudden depressurization of the tubes, about 300 cases of decompression sickness were recorded during the construction process. The project was about 25% completed by September 1938. Workers primarily dug underwater using tunnelling shields that drilled inward from both portals of each tube, but used dynamite to blast through thick sheets of rock. Afterward, steel rings, each composed of 14 sections which individually weighed up to 3,500 pounds (1,600 kg), were laid within
2176-576: A six-lane bridge should be built instead, since a bridge would save an estimated $ 36 million compared to the tunnel. This plan was endorsed by Brooklyn borough president Raymond V. Ingersoll and State Senator Thomas C. Desmond . Robert Moses , the chairman of the Triborough Bridge Authority (TBA), also supported a bridge, but for a separate reason: he held a grudge against the Tunnel Authority because he had been rejected from running
2304-630: A then-new lighting technology that allowed drivers to more quickly adjust to the sunlight upon leaving the tunnel. One hundred and fifty workers were hired and trained to operate the tunnel. The first paying customer was Henry Sokovit of Queens. In a report published in August 1939, the New York City Tunnel Authority had estimated that the tunnel would carry 10 million vehicles in its first year and would reach its 16-million annual-vehicle capacity by 1952. Against expectation, traffic counts in
2432-662: A viaduct into the tunnel. A toll plaza was formerly located here. Exits 13 and 14 for I-495 are located just east of the former toll plaza. Exit 13 is located right underneath the Pulaski Bridge and contains an eastbound-only exit and entrance to and from Borden Avenue. Exit 14, located immediately east of exit 13, contains an eastbound exit and westbound entrance to the tunnel from New York State Route 25A (21st Street). Eastbound traffic entering from Exit 13 intersects with traffic exiting to Exit 14, which must stop and yield to each other. Westbound traffic entering from Exit 14 can enter
2560-516: A westbound high-occupancy vehicle lane . The 6,414-foot-long (1,955 m) northern tube is slightly longer than the 6,272-foot-long (1,912 m) southern tube. Although the tubes' portals in Queens are located side by side, the Manhattan portals are slightly offset from each other. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel's eastern end is in Long Island City , where the Interstate 495 (I-495) descends from
2688-559: Is capable of completely filtering the tubes' air within 90 seconds. The Queens portal also abuts the small Bridge and Tunnel Park, which is bounded by the Pulaski Bridge on the west, 50th Avenue on the north, 11th Place on the east, and the Queens–Midtown Tunnel entrance ramp on the south. The park opened in 1979, and is operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA; now MTA Bridges and Tunnels ). NYC Parks owns
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#17328479749132816-399: Is considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying. According to the 2020 census data from New York City Department of City Planning , the southern portion of Long Island City south of the Queensboro Bridge had an approximate average equal population of White and Asian residents with each their populations being between 10,000 and 19,999 residents, while
2944-427: Is fed by eastbound traffic on 36th Street, as well as by entrance ramps from the north and south. These entrance ramps, collectively referred to as Tunnel Approach Street , run between Second and First Avenues from 34th Street to 40th Street. Electronic toll gantries are located just outside the Manhattan portals. The Manhattan side was originally also supposed to link with the proposed Mid-Manhattan Expressway and
3072-406: Is implemented, drivers who enter Manhattan via the tunnel would pay a second toll. The congestion charges are planned to be collected via E-ZPass and tolls-by-mail. The charges are planned to vary based on time of day and vehicle class, but the congestion toll is expected to be charged once per day. Drivers who use the Queens–Midtown Tunnel to enter the congestion zone will receive a credit toward
3200-454: Is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 163 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole. The 108th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 88.2% between 1990 and 2018. The precinct reported 2 murders, 12 rapes, 90 robberies, 108 felony assaults, 109 burglaries, 490 grand larcenies, and 114 grand larcenies auto in 2018. Long Island City
3328-529: Is located along the East River, just north of the LIRR's Long Island City Station. Redevelopment in Queens West reflects the intent to have the area as a major residential area in New York City, with its high-rise residences very close to public transportation, making it convenient for commuters to travel to Manhattan by ferry or subway. The first tower, the 42-floor Citylights, opened in 1998 with an elementary school at
3456-553: Is now one of the buildings which houses LaGuardia Community College . Other buildings on the campus originally served as the location of the Ford Instrument Company, which was at one time a major producer of precision machines and devices. Artist Isamu Noguchi converted a photo-engraving plant into a workshop; the site is now the Noguchi Museum , a space dedicated to his work. The Standard Motor Products headquarters,
3584-834: Is served by the following New York City Fire Department (FDNY) fire stations: Formerly, Engine Company 261/Ladder Company 116 was located at 37-20 29th Street, until it was closed in 2003 as a cost-saving measure. As of 2018 , preterm births are more common in southern Long Island City than in other places citywide, but are less common in northern Long Island City; births to teenage mothers are less common than citywide in both areas. In northern Long Island City, there were 84 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 15.1 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). In southern Long Island City, there were 90 preterm births per 1,000 live births, and 14.9 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births. Long Island City has
3712-605: Is the eastern terminus of the Queensboro Bridge , the only non-tolled automotive route connecting Queens and Manhattan . Northeast of the bridge are the Queensbridge Houses , a development of the New York City Housing Authority and the largest public housing complex in the Western Hemisphere . Long Island City is part of Queens Community District 1 to the north and Queens Community District 2 to
3840-734: The East River (FDR) Drive , though neither connection was built. Additionally, the Queens side was to have connected to an expressway that would have reached to the Rockaway Peninsula . The tunnel was once designated as part of New York State Route 24 . In the mid-1940s, NY 24 was routed to follow the Crosstown Connecting Highway and the Queens–Midtown Expressway between Queens Boulevard in Woodside, Queens , and
3968-533: The High Line viaduct, was closed in 1981 during construction of the Javits Center . The first "Animal Walk" through the Queens–Midtown Tunnel memorialized a similar event ten years earlier, when the animals had walked to Manhattan through the Lincoln Tunnel due to a railroad strike. The walk became an annual tradition, and crowds of several hundred people would gather at the Queens–Midtown Tunnel's Queens portal to see
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4096-523: The Hudson River and continue westward to New Jersey. The planned tunnel would originate at 10th Avenue on Manhattan's west side, run underneath Manhattan streets and the East River, and surface near Borden Avenue at the Long Island City side. The tunnel would contain exits to Oakland Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, as well as to Third Avenue in Manhattan. The Fifth Avenue Association further proposed that
4224-696: The Hunters Point Historic District , a national historic district that includes 19 contributing buildings along 45th Avenue between 21st and 23rd Streets. They are a set of townhouses built in the late 19th century. The historic district was created by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1968, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The modern Queens West and Hunter's Point South developments are located on
4352-693: The MTA Bus Company , and the X63 , X64 and X68 , operated by MTA New York City Transit . All of these routes except the BM5, QM7, QM8, QM8 Super Express (SX), QM11, QM25, QM2 SX, QM5 SX, and QM20 SX use the tunnel for westbound travel only, as most of the routes use the Queensboro Bridge for eastbound travel. As of August 6, 2023 , drivers pay $ 11.19 per car or $ 4.71 per motorcycle for tolls by mail/non-NYCSC E-Z Pass. E-ZPass users with transponders issued by
4480-579: The Midtown Tunnel ) is a vehicular tunnel under the East River in New York City , connecting the boroughs of Manhattan and Queens . The tunnel consists of a pair of tubes, each carrying two lanes. The west end of the tunnel is located on the East Side of Midtown Manhattan , while the east end of the tunnel is located in Long Island City in Queens. Interstate 495 (I-495) runs the entire length of
4608-693: The New York City Tunnel Authority to construct the Queens–Midtown and Brooklyn–Battery Tunnels . Work on the Queens–Midtown Tunnel could start as soon as the city received the federal funds. The Tunnel Authority accepted the grant in March 1936, and the Queens–Midtown Tunnel became the United States' largest public works project that was not supervised by a federal agency. In April 1936, Manhattan borough president Samuel Levy suggested that
4736-556: The ZIP Code 11101, is a neighborhood within Long Island City, located at 40°44′4.87″N 73°56′9.81″W / 40.7346861°N 73.9360583°W / 40.7346861; -73.9360583 and bordered by Calvary Cemetery to the east; the Long Island Expressway to the north; Newtown Creek to the south; and Dutch Kills, a tributary of Newtown Creek, to the west. Blissville was named after Neziah Bliss, who owned most of
4864-511: The government of New York State to construct one of two campuses for its proposed Amazon HQ2 at Queens West in Long Island City. The other campus would be located at National Landing in Crystal City, Virginia . Both campuses would have 25,000 workers. The selection was confirmed by Amazon on November 13, 2018. On February 14, 2019, Amazon announced it was pulling out, citing unexpected opposition from local lawmakers and unions. In 1870,
4992-542: The 1880s, Mayor De Bevoise nearly bankrupted the Long Island City government by embezzlement , of which he was convicted. Many dissatisfied residents of Astoria circulated a petition to ask the New York State Legislature to allow it to secede from Long Island City and reincorporate as the Village of Astoria, as it existed prior to the incorporation of Long Island City, in 1884. The petition was ultimately dropped by
5120-431: The 1990s, Queens West on the west side of Long Island City was developed to revitalize 74 acres (30 ha) along the East River , with plans to bring in as many as 16,000 new residents in a total of 19 new buildings. In 2001, the neighborhood was rezoned from an industrial neighborhood to a residential neighborhood, and the area underwent gentrification , with developments such as Hunter's Point South being built in
5248-502: The 19th century. The tributary of the same name connected to Sunswick Creek at its north end, which facilitated commerce in the region. The canalization of Newtown Creek and the Kills at the end of the 19th century intensified industrial development of the area, which prospered until the middle of the 20th century. The neighborhood is currently undergoing a massive rezoning of mixed residential and commercial properties. Blissville, which has
Midtown Tunnel - Misplaced Pages Continue
5376-409: The 38th Street Tunnel Committee to advocate for the tunnel. The groups stated that the tunnel would act as a relief corridor for traffic from midtown Manhattan, which at the time had to use other crossings to the north or south. That June, the city voted to allocate $ 100,000 toward surveying sites and making test bores. Following news of this allotment, several more civic groups expressed support for
5504-481: The BID's size and budget be doubled, and the BID was again expanded in 2024. Eagle Electric , now known as Cooper Wiring Devices, was one of the last major factories in the area, before it moved to China ; Plant No. 7, which was the largest of their factories and housed their corporate offices, is being converted to residential luxury lofts . Long Island City is currently home to the largest fortune cookie factory in
5632-536: The East River railroad tunnels to the south and the Steinway Tunnel to the north. Of the four shafts that were being constructed for the tunnel, only the Queens construction shaft had been completed. The next month, the Tunnel Authority had accepted a bid for the Midtown ventilation shaft, and it had been authorized to begin the shaft's construction immediately. Construction on the Manhattan ventilation shaft began with
5760-519: The East River segment would be complete by 1936. By July 1932, no contracts had been awarded because of a lack of funding, and the tunnel's cost had increased to $ 80 million. As the Midtown Tunnel plan faltered, the Board of Estimate approved the construction of other projects that had not been as extensively studied. In May 1935, Governor Herbert H. Lehman signed a bill that authorized the creation of
5888-490: The East River waterfront. Long Island City is home to a large and dynamic artistic community. Woodside, Sunnyside, and Long Island City are patrolled by the 108th Precinct of the NYPD , located at 5-47 50th Avenue. The 108th Precinct ranked 25th safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. As of 2018 , with a non-fatal assault rate of 19 per 100,000 people, Sunnyside and Woodside's rate of violent crimes per capita
6016-669: The East River. Both ventilation towers are 100-foot-tall (30 m) orange brick structures in the Art Deco style. The tower on the Manhattan side is an octagon-shaped structure located on a city-owned block bounded by 41st and 42nd Streets, First Avenue, and the FDR Drive. This block is shared with the Robert Moses Playground , a playground operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks), which
6144-598: The Hispanic and Black populations each were under 5,000 residents. North of the Queensboro Bridge in northern Long Island City had between 10,000 and 19,999 Hispanic residents while the White, Black, and Asian populations were each between 5,000 and 9,999 residents. According to a New York Times article from October 18, 2021, the Asian population of Long Island City has grown fivefold since 2010 nearing 11,000 residents making up 34% of
6272-599: The Hunters Point Historic District and Queensboro Bridge, the 45th Road – Court House Square Station (Dual System IRT) , Long Island City Courthouse Complex , and United States Post Office are listed on the National Register of Historic Places . New York City designated landmarks include the Pepsi-Cola sign along the East River; the Fire Engine Company 258, Hook and Ladder Company 115 firehouse;
6400-489: The LIE between the Queens–Midtown Tunnel and Farmingdale, New York , in the late 1950s, and the designation was removed from the LIE altogether c. 1962 . The expressway and tunnel were designated as I-495 c. 1960. The two tubes were built with an exterior diameter of 31 feet (9.4 m), a roadway 21 feet (6.4 m) wide, and a maximum vehicular height limit of 13 feet 1 inch (3.99 m). As of 2015 ,
6528-624: The Long Island City Courthouse; the New York Architectural Terra-Cotta Company building; and the Chase Manhattan Bank Building . Based on data from the 2010 United States Census , the population of the combined Queensbridge-Ravenswood-Long Island City neighborhood was 20,030, a decrease of 1,074 (5.1%) from the 21,104 counted in 2000 . Covering an area of 540.94 acres (218.91 ha),
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#17328479749136656-635: The Manhattan–Queens tunnel, as well as another tunnel under the Narrows between Brooklyn and Staten Island . Afterward, the New York City Board of Transportation hurried to submit plans for the Triborough Tunnel's construction. In January 1930, after the Midtown Hudson Tunnel between Manhattan and New Jersey was approved, engineers initiated a study to examine a possible connection with
6784-565: The New York E‑ZPass Customer Service Center pay $ 6.94 per car or $ 3.02 per motorcycle. Mid-Tier NYCSC E-Z Pass users pay $ 8.36 per car or $ 3.57 per motorcycle. All E-ZPass users with transponders not issued by the New York E-ZPass CSC will be required to pay Toll-by-mail rates. Open-road cashless tolling started on January 10, 2017. The tollbooths were dismantled, and drivers are no longer able to pay cash at
6912-454: The New York State Legislature to conduct an investigation into the Queens–Midtown Tunnel's costs. Moses's allegation also originated from his resentment toward the Tunnel Authority. Work proceeded quickly afterward, and the tunnel was 60% complete by May 1939. Construction was briefly halted in July when sandhogs went on strike for two weeks due to a disagreement between two unions. By that time,
7040-489: The Queens–Midtown Tunnel Authority to construct the tunnel. Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia subsequently nominated three prominent businessmen to head the agency. La Guardia supported the immediate construction of the tunnel because he believed it would help traffic get from Manhattan to the 1939 New York World's Fair in Queens. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel Authority applied for a federal loan and grant, worth
7168-460: The Queens–Midtown Tunnel as something that would spur development in Queens. The tunnel was opened to the general public on November 15, 1940, at a ceremony on the Queens side. The attendees included the Queens and Manhattan borough presidents; U.S. Senator Robert F. Wagner ; and New York City Council president Newbold Morris , who was attending in La Guardia's stead. The tubes were fitted with
7296-458: The Queens–Midtown Tunnel was also the site of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Animal Walk. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel consists of two tubes that each carry two traffic lanes. The southern tube normally carries eastbound traffic to Queens, and the northern tube normally carries westbound traffic to Manhattan. During the morning rush hour, one lane in the southern tube is used as
7424-411: The Queens–Midtown Tunnel. NY 24 continued through the tunnel and ended at First and Second Avenues in Manhattan, which at the time were designated as NY 1A . The Crosstown Connection Highway and the Midtown Highway were upgraded into the first portions of the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway (BQE) and the Queens Midtown Expressway , respectively, in the early 1950s. NY 24 was rerouted along
7552-444: The Town of Newtown. At the time of its incorporation, Long Island City had between 12,000 and 15,000 residents. Its charter provided for an elected mayor and a ten-member Board of Aldermen with two representing each of the city's five wards. City ordinances could be passed by a majority vote of the Board of Aldermen and the mayor's signature. Long Island City held its first election on July 5, 1870. Residents elected A.D. Ditmars
7680-411: The Triborough Tunnel. Around this time, engineers revised the Triborough Tunnel's eastern approaches, moving the route of the Brooklyn spur from 11th to 21st Street. Exploratory borings were reportedly completed by June 1930. Three months later, the Board of Transportation modified the plans for the tunnel on the Manhattan side. The new plans included a "mixing plaza" at Second Avenue in Manhattan, where
7808-608: The United States, owned by Wonton Foods and producing four million fortune cookies a day. Lucky numbers included on fortunes in the company's cookies led to 110 people across the United States winning $ 100,000 each in a May 2005 drawing for Powerball . The Brooks Brothers tie manufacturing factory, which employs 122 people and produces more than 1.5 million ties per year, has operated in Long Island City since 1999. Other companies headquartered in Long Island City include independent film studio Troma and Standard Motor Products . In spring 2010, JetBlue Airways announced it
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#17328479749137936-437: The area are the Elmhurst Hospital Center in Elmhurst and the Mount Sinai Hospital of Queens in Astoria . Long Island City is covered by ZIP Code 11101. The United States Post Office operates the Long Island City Station at 46-02 21st Street. Long Island City generally has a slightly higher ratio of college-educated residents than the rest of the city as of 2018 . In Community Board 1, half of residents (50%) have
8064-574: The area's Asian residents and businesses. Long Island City was once home to many factories and bakeries, some of which are finding new uses. The former Silvercup bakery is now home to Silvercup Studios , which has produced notable works such as NBC 's 30 Rock and HBO 's Sex and the City and The Sopranos . The Silvercup sign is visible from the IRT Flushing Line and BMT Astoria Line trains going into and out of Queensboro Plaza ( 7 , <7> , N and W trains). The former Sunshine Bakery
8192-427: The area. Since then, there has been substantial commercial and residential growth in Long Island City, with 41 new residential apartment buildings being built just between 2010 and 2017. A resident of nearby Woodside proposed establishing a Japantown in Long Island City in 2006, though this did not occur. By the mid-2010s, Long Island City was one of New York City's fastest-growing neighborhoods. In addition to
8320-403: The authority. Moses's agency would be the only entity who could construct and operate a toll bridge entirely within the New York City limits, and the already-approved federal funding for the tunnel would be canceled if the project was delayed too long. New York City Tunnel Authority commissioner William Friedman , Mayor LaGuardia, and the Queens Borough Chamber of Commerce opposed a bridge, since
8448-453: The base. Others have been completed since then and more are being planned or under construction. Long Island City contains several of the tallest buildings in Queens . The 658-foot (201 m) One Court Square , formerly the Citicorp Building, was built in 1990 in Courthouse Square ; it is currently the fourth tallest building in Queens and the fifth-tallest on Long Island, and was Queens' tallest building until 2019. The tallest building in
8576-408: The borough and second tallest on Long Island, the 811-foot (247 m) Orchard residential tower, was architecturally topped-out in July 2024. Yet another skyscraper, the 755-foot (230 m) tower named Sven , completed construction at Queens Plaza and became the third tallest building in the borough. The Queensbridge Houses , a public-housing complex, comprises over 3,000 units, making it
8704-463: The citizens. Long Island City continued to exist as an incorporated city until 1898, when Queens was annexed to New York City. The last mayor of Long Island City was an Irish-American named Patrick Jerome "Battle-Axe" Gleason . The Common Council of Long Island City in 1873 adopted the coat of arms as "emblematical of the varied interest represented by Long Island City." It was designed by George H. Williams, of Ravenswood . The overall composition
8832-472: The city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In Community Board 1, 19% of residents are obese , 11% are diabetic , and 29% have high blood pressure —compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively. In Community Board 2, 20% of residents are obese , 9% are diabetic , and 23% have high blood pressure . In addition, 22% of children in northern Long Island City and 19% of children in southern Long Island City are obese, compared to
8960-406: The city create a bridge-and-tunnel authority to would raise funding and oversee construction and operations. The proposed agency would be similar to the Port of New York Authority , which was constructing and operating Hudson River crossings. The Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York formally endorsed a Queens–Manhattan crossing in January 1929, but stated that the crossing could be either
9088-533: The citywide average of 20%. Eighty-nine percent of Community Board 1 residents and ninety-two percent of Community Board 2 residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 79% of residents in both areas described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", slightly higher than the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket, there are 17 bodegas in southern Long Island City and 10 in northern Long Island City. The nearest large hospitals in
9216-424: The congestion charge during the day, and they would pay a discounted toll at night. Long Island City Long Island City ( LIC ) is a neighborhood on the western tip of the New York City borough of Queens . It is bordered by Astoria to the north; the East River to the west; Sunnyside to the east; and Newtown Creek , which separates Queens from Greenpoint, Brooklyn , to the south. Incorporated as
9344-478: The construction of the Triborough Tunnel. An official plan for the Triborough Tunnel was released that June. The plan outlined an $ 86 million system of feeder highways, including the crosstown Manhattan tunnel and the tunnel spur from Brooklyn. The New York City Board of Estimate approved the use of tolls for the tunnel, which would be used toward tunnel maintenance and create revenue for the city. Subsequently, officials expected that tunnel construction could start by
9472-423: The crosstown-highway section. In June 1931, the Board of Transportation submitted a detailed revised plan for the Triborough Tunnel to the Board of Estimate. The project was now expected to cost $ 93.6 million, including the $ 23.5 million alignment under the East River and within Queens. That October, the Board of Estimate allocated $ 200,000 for planning. It was expected that construction would start in March 1932 and
9600-555: The eastbound tube's lanes began carrying westbound traffic during morning rush hours. In 1950, the TBTA and several airlines agreed to build the East Side Airline Terminal at First Avenue between 37th and 38th Streets, on the Manhattan side of the tunnel. When the terminal opened in 1953, it accommodated bus routes that ran to either LaGuardia or John F. Kennedy International Airports . The terminal operated until 1983, and it
9728-523: The end of that year. In July 1929, the city was faced with unexpected legal issues. The language of Walker's proclamation ostensibly allowed construction to proceed, but in doing so, tasked the wrong city agency with constructing the Triborough Tunnel. Civic groups convened a special session in which they asked the New York City Board of Estimate to override the laws so the tunnel could be approved. The Board of Estimate ultimately allotted $ 5 million toward feasibility studies and preliminary construction for
9856-505: The end of the month, the first bids for the tunnel were advertised. A groundbreaking ceremony for the tunnel was held on the Queens side on October 1, 1936, with President Franklin D. Roosevelt in attendance. Shortly afterward, the New York City Tunnel Authority awarded the first contracts for the tunnel's construction. Test bores for the tubes were started later that month. These exploratory bores utilized diamond-tipped drills operated from flat-bottomed boats , which drilled downward into
9984-432: The feasibility of a third tube through 1967, but ultimately, a third tube was never built. In 1971, one lane of the Queens–Midtown Tunnel's eastbound tube was converted to a westbound high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) and bus lane during the morning rush hour. The reversible tunnel lane was fed by a HOV/bus lane along I-495, which started 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the tunnel's Queens portal. Each spring from 1981 to 2016,
10112-570: The first few months were lower than expected because motorists could use the East River bridges to the north and south for free. The tunnel had carried one million vehicles by February 1941, three months after opening. This was further exacerbated by the gasoline rationing during World War II , which caused vehicular trips in general to decline. The tunnel was closed during the nighttime beginning in February 1943, but due to growing nighttime traffic demand, 24-hour operation resumed in July 1944. By 1946,
10240-411: The first mayor; Ditmars ran as both a Democrat and a Republican . The first elected Board of Aldermen was H. Rudolph and Patrick Lonirgan (Ward 1); Francis McNena and William E. Bragaw (Ward 2); George Hunter and Mr. Williams (Third Ward); James R. Bennett and John Wegart (Ward Four); and E.M. Hartshort and William Carlin (Fifth Ward). The mayor and the aldermen were inaugurated on July 18, 1870. In
10368-523: The funding for the tunnel had already been secured. In spite of the bridge dispute, the PWA ordered that tunnel planning work proceed. A bill for the proposed bridge was voted down in the New York State Senate that May. The Tunnel Authority approved plans for the Queens–Midtown Tunnel in August 1936, and the Authority's chief engineer, Ole Singstad , was tasked with the project's design. By
10496-458: The growing Asian population in NYCHA 's Queensbridge Houses section of Long Island City at 11% are mostly from immigrant working-class backgrounds and largely have limited English skills, which has presented issues when residents are unable to find interpreters to communicate with NYCHA. New York City Council member Julie Won , who represents the neighborhood, has spoken about the need for outreach to
10624-533: The land in the 1830s and 1840s. Bliss built the first version of what was known for many years as the Blissville Bridge, a drawbridge over Newtown Creek, connecting Greenpoint, Brooklyn and Blissville; it was replaced in the 20th century by the Greenpoint Avenue Bridge , also called the J. J. Byrne Memorial Bridge, located slightly upstream. Blissville existed as a small village until 1870 when it
10752-537: The land that constitutes Bridge and Tunnel Park. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel was originally proposed in 1921 by Manhattan 's borough president, Julius Miller . The plan resurfaced in 1926 under the names Triborough Tunnel and alternatively 38th Street Tunnel . Miller, in conjunction with Queens ' borough president, Maurice E. Connolly , proposed the $ 58 million tunnel as a connector from Midtown Manhattan to Long Island City in Queens, and to Greenpoint in Brooklyn . At
10880-627: The largest such complex in North America. Since 2005, part of the neighborhood has been maintained by the LIC Partnership as part of the Long Island City Business Improvement District. Initially, the business improvement district comprised 84 properties on either side of Queens Plaza. The BID was expanded in 2017 to cover several other major roads in Long Island City. The LIC Partnership requested in 2022 that
11008-439: The march in the middle of the night. Even so, the march was controversial and attracted protests from organizations who opposed what they saw as the inhumane treatment of the circus animals. When the circus stopped using elephants in 2016, the elephant walk ceased. Under an agreement with Verizon Wireless , the Queens–Midtown Tunnel received cellular service in 1995. The tubes' roadways were originally paved with bricks, but
11136-460: The median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. In both community boards, most inhabitants are middle-aged adults and youth. As of 2017, the median household income was $ 66,382 in Community Board 1 and $ 67,359 in Community Board 2. In 2018, an estimated 18% of Community Board 1 and 20% of Community Board 2 residents lived in poverty, compared to 19% in all of Queens and 20% in all of New York City. The unemployment rate
11264-498: The narrow side streets. One group proposed a crosstown elevated highway in lieu of a tunnel under Manhattan. In December 1930, the United States Department of War approved the construction of the Triborough Tunnel, since the tube would not hinder maritime navigation during wartime. Even with this approval, the Board of Transportation had delayed construction by several months because of significant public concerns about
11392-412: The neighborhood had a population density of 37.0 inhabitants per acre (23,700/sq mi; 9,100/km ). The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 14.7% (2,946) White , 25.9% (5,183) African American , 0.3% (62) Native American , 15.5% (3,096) Asian , 0.0% (6) Pacific Islander , 1.2% (248) from other races , and 1.9% (385) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 40.5% (8,104) of
11520-452: The neighborhood's population. The new Asian residents are mainly Chinese, Bengalis, Koreans, and Japanese, and the neighborhood had at least 15 Asian-owned businesses in the neighborhood. Unlike the largely working-class Asian immigrant populations in southern Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan, the growing Asian population in Long Island City tends to be second- or third-generation Americans and are largely middle or upper class. Exceptionally however,
11648-487: The official state colors of New York. There was a controversy over the re-tiling of the tunnels, which cost a combined $ 30 million, because of the ongoing transit crisis at the time. On September 4, 2024, a contractor conducting surveys for the East River Greenway accidentally drilled through the roof of one of the tubes, causing water to leak into the tunnel, and forcing it to be closed for emergency repairs. It
11776-648: The population. Long Island City is split between Queens Community Board 1 to the north of Queens Plaza and Queens Community Board 2 south of Queens Plaza. The entirety of Queens Community Board 1, which comprises northern Long Island City and Astoria, had 199,969 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 83.4 years. The entirety of Queens Community Board 2, which comprises southern Long Island City, Sunnyside and Woodside, had 135,972 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 85.4 years. Both figures are higher than
11904-488: The present-day Nassau Expressway . In December 1965, Moses canceled his plans for the Mid-Manhattan Expressway due to opposition from the city government. He affirmed that the TBTA would construct a third tube for the Queens–Midtown Tunnel because it did not require the city's approval, and he stated that the new tube could be completed four-and-a-half years after construction started. According to Moses, after
12032-514: The riverbed. After the test bores were completed in November 1936, engineers determined that there were many geological and manmade obstacles to constructing the tunnel. First, the Queens–Midtown Tunnel's path passed through a large concentration of solid rock, although there were also some pockets of dirt under the river that would be easy to dig through. Additionally, sandhogs digging the Queens–Midtown Tunnel would have to avoid accidental damage to
12160-499: The road surface was replaced with asphalt in 1995. Two years later, the TBTA's successor, MTA Bridges and Tunnels, announced its intention to renovate the roof of the Queens–Midtown Tunnel. The $ 132 million project, completed in May 2001, involved replacing the roof with 930 slabs of concrete that were suspended from brackets glued onto the tunnel shell. The major contract for the renovation project, worth $ 97 million, received scrutiny when it
12288-447: The same rate, construction might have to be abandoned midway through. By September 1938, three-fourths of the tunnel's contracts had been awarded. Work on the underwater section of the tubes started in April 1938. Underwater boring was supposed to have started earlier but the geology of the underwater section had delayed construction. When the underwater digging started, La Guardia opened
12416-558: The south. It is patrolled by the New York City Police Department 's 108th Precinct. Politically, Long Island City is represented by the New York City Council 's 26th District. Long Island City was incorporated as a city on May 4, 1870, from the merging of the village of Astoria and the hamlets of Ravenswood , Hunters Point , Blissville , Sunnyside , Dutch Kills , Steinway, Bowery Bay and Middleton in
12544-420: The third tube was completed, two tubes would be dedicated exclusively to westbound and eastbound traffic, while the center tube would become a reversible-flow roadway. The Queens Chamber of Commerce supported the third-tube project, but citywide officials opposed it. Moses ignored the city's disapproval and, in March 1966, advertised for bids to make test borings for the third tube. The TBTA continued studying
12672-416: The time, there was frequent and heavy congestion on bridges across the East River , which separated Manhattan from the boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn on Long Island . Brooklyn borough president James J. Byrne expressed his displeasure at the fact that the Queens and Manhattan borough presidents had proposed the Triborough Tunnel without consulting him first. That December, Mayor James J. Walker formed
12800-524: The title Midtown Tunnel . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Midtown_Tunnel&oldid=1118749366 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Queens-Midtown Tunnel The Queens–Midtown Tunnel (often referred to as
12928-404: The tubes from Queens and from Manhattan's west side would rise to ground level. The eastbound and westbound tubes would respectively run under 37th and 38th Streets, since the streets were too narrow to accommodate two tubes side-by-side. Advocates of the Triborough Tunnel opposed the construction of surface-level exit plazas, saying that the mixing plaza would force motorists to briefly drive along
13056-500: The tunnel and urged that it be completed as soon as possible. By February 1929, thirty-five civic groups supported the construction of the tunnel. Simultaneously, civic groups proposed a 4.3-mile (6.9 km) system of tunnels under Manhattan, connecting Queens in the east with Weehawken, New Jersey , in the west. The groups proposed that the Queens–Midtown Tunnel connect with the Midtown Hudson (Lincoln) Tunnel , which would cross
13184-666: The tunnel from either 21st Street or 50th Avenue; there is no westbound exit. Although exits 13 and 14 are sequential exit numbers on I-495, they are actually the first and second numbered exits on I-495. The exits from the Manhattan side are not numbered. The tubes travel under the East River until they are directly below 42nd Street on the Manhattan side, then curve south under First Avenue. The tubes then turn west between 36th and 37th Streets. Both tubes surface east of Second Avenue in Midtown Manhattan . The westbound roadway passes underneath Second Avenue and continues west for
13312-523: The tunnel in 1936, although by then, the plans had been downsized to a connector between Queens and the east side of Manhattan. The tunnel, designed by Ole Singstad , was opened to traffic on November 15, 1940. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel is owned by New York City and operated by MTA Bridges and Tunnels , an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority . It is used by several dozen express bus routes. From 1981 to 2016,
13440-508: The tunnel was 90% complete. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel finished on schedule in late 1940. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first person to drive through the tunnel, on October 28, 1940. The general public could not use it until mid-November. An advertisement for the tunnel, published in newspapers just before its opening, touted it as "the toll that isn't a toll" with the slogan "Cross In 3 Minutes, Save In 3 Ways ... Time! Money! Gas!" The Queens Chamber of Commerce's president praised
13568-483: The tunnel was closed to traffic for a few hours overnight to accommodate the annual " Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Animal Walk". Several nights before the circus opened at Madison Square Garden , the elephants marched into Manhattan and down 34th Street to the arena. The animals had formerly been transported into the city via the West Side railroad line in Manhattan, but the southernmost part of that line,
13696-476: The tunnel was running a $ 5.8 million deficit. The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, the successor to the New York City Tunnel Authority, recorded a 72% increase in tunnel traffic in the first half of that year compared to the same time frame in 1945. The tunnel recorded its first profits in 1949, with a net earning of $ 659,505. As part of an experiment to alleviate traffic congestion, in December 1955, one of
13824-471: The tunnel. In March 1939, the PWA released a report predicting that the tunnel would not be complete until summer 1941, eight months later than originally planned, due to geological difficulties. Around the same time, Robert Moses alleged that the Queens–Midtown Tunnel would not be profitable, during an unrelated argument about the feasibility of building the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel. This prompted
13952-399: The tunnel. The tunnel's projected $ 58.4 million cost only applied to the 3,790-foot (1,160 m) section of the tunnel under the river, as well as the 1,600-foot (490 m) Queens approach and the 2,400-foot (730 m) Manhattan approach east of Second Avenue. The Brooklyn spur had been canceled for the time being because it could not be funded independently, while the crosstown highway
14080-435: The tunnel. Instead, cameras and E-ZPass readers are mounted on new overhead gantries manufactured by TransCore located on the Manhattan side. A vehicle without E-ZPass has a picture taken of its license plate and a bill for the toll is mailed to its owner. For E-ZPass users, sensors detect their transponders wirelessly. Congestion pricing in New York City is indefinitely postponed as of 2024 ; if congestion pricing
14208-488: The tunnel; I-495's western terminus is at the Manhattan portal of the tunnel. The Queens–Midtown Tunnel was first planned in 1921, though the plans for the tunnel were modified over the following years. By the 1930s, the tunnel was being proposed as the Triborough Tunnel , which would connect Queens and Brooklyn with the east and west sides of Manhattan. The New York City Tunnel Authority finally started construction on
14336-441: The two existing tubes. In January 1965, Moses announced that money had been allocated to a feasibility study for the third tube, which was projected to cost $ 120 million. This proposal was part of his plan to build a Mid-Manhattan expressway over 30th Street. The third tube was to connect to the ultimately unbuilt Bushwick Expressway , which would have run across northeastern Brooklyn and southwestern Queens before intersecting with
14464-421: The two segments of the tubes were only separated by 850 feet (260 m). Workers digging from the Manhattan side no longer required compressed air because the tubes had reached a rock cropping. The sandhogs sped up their pace of digging, and by late September, the project was 45 days ahead of schedule. The disjointed segments of both tubes were connected with a "holing through" ceremony in November 1939, with
14592-497: The valves that allowed compressed air to flow into the tubes, and workers started digging the tunnels under the river from each end. The pressurized air allowed sandhogs to work as much as six hours per day in two 3-hour shifts, but as they tunneled nearer to the center of the river, the pressure increased and sandhogs worked fewer hours per day. Builders also pumped air along the top of the tunnel to prevent water from seeping in. Later, workers began wearing oxygen masks connected to
14720-400: The vehicular height limit is 12 feet 1 inch (3.68 m), and the width limit is 8 feet 6 inches (2.59 m). The portals of each tube contain flood doors weighing 20 short tons (18 long tons; 18 t) and measuring 2 feet (0.61 m) thick, 14 feet (4.3 m) across, and 29 feet (8.8 m) tall. The tunnel contains two ventilation buildings, one on each side of
14848-526: The villages of Astoria , Ravenswood , Hunters Point, Dutch Kills, Middletown, Sunnyside , Blissville, and Bowery Bay were incorporated into Long Island City. Dutch Kills was a hamlet , named for its navigable tributary of Newtown Creek, that occupied what today is Queens Plaza . Dutch Kills was an important road hub during the American Revolutionary War , and the site of a British Army garrison from 1776 to 1783. The area supported farms during
14976-438: Was 8% in Community Board 1 and 5% in Community Board 2, compared to 8% in Queens and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 47% in Community Board 1 and 51% in Community Board 2, slightly lower than the citywide and boroughwide rates of 53% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018 , northern LIC is considered to be gentrifying , while southern LIC
15104-414: Was built along with the tunnel and opened in 1941. The Queens side's ventilation building is a rectangular tower located in the center of Borden Avenue between Second and Fifth Streets. Due to its location in the middle of Borden Avenue, traffic along the road drives around the building. The two buildings originally contained a combined 23 fans, which were replaced in the mid-2000s. The ventilation system
15232-501: Was completed in 2008. For a short time after the September 11 attacks in 2001, all Manhattan-bound traffic through the tunnel was subject to a high-occupancy vehicle restriction. This restriction was removed in April 2002. In 2017–2018, the tiled walls in the Queens–Midtown and Brooklyn–Battery Tunnels were replaced due to damage suffered during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The re-tiled white walls have gold-and-blue stripes, representing
15360-517: Was discovered that the contractor had given money to the political party of Governor George Pataki just before the contract was awarded. A state judge found that the MTA did not break any laws or ethical obligations when it awarded the contract to the Pataki donor instead of another competitor. The MTA started replacing the 23 fans within the tunnel's ventilation structures, in 2004 and the fan-replacement project
15488-508: Was formerly a sectional center facility (SCF). The Greater Astoria Historical Society , a nonprofit cultural and historical organization documenting the Long Island City area's history, has operated since 1985. Through the 1930s, three subway tunnels, the Queens-Midtown Tunnel , and the Queensboro Bridge were built to connect the neighborhood to Manhattan. By the 1970s, the factories in Long Island City were being abandoned. In
15616-472: Was incorporated into Long Island City. Historically an industrial neighborhood, it has Triangle 54 , a small park with a monument at 54th Avenue and 48th Street. Hunters Point is located on the south side of Long Island City, along Newtown Creek . The area took the name Hunters Point in 1825, named after British sea captain George Hunter whose family operated the site as a 210-acre farm. It contains
15744-413: Was inspired by New York City's coat of arms. The shield is rich in historic allusion, including Native American, Dutch, and English symbols. In 1898, Long Island City became part of New York City. The city surrendered its independence in 1898 to become part of the City of Greater New York . However, Long Island City survives as ZIP Code 11101 and ZIP Code prefix 111 (with its own main post office) and
15872-533: Was moving its headquarters from Forest Hills to Long Island City, also incorporating the jobs from its Darien, Connecticut , office. The airline, which operates its largest hub at JFK Airport, also operates from LaGuardia Airport, and made the Brewster Building in Queens Plaza its home. The airline moved there around mid-2012. In November 2018, news media claimed that Amazon.com was in final talks with
16000-517: Was re-opened several hours later, after a temporary plug was put in place. Contractors later permanently fixed the leak by fitting a steel cap over that plug. The tunnel carries 21 express bus routes ; sixteen of these routes use the tunnel for westbound travel only. The bus routes that use the tunnel are the BM5 , QM1 , QM2 , QM3 , QM4 , QM5 , QM6 , QM7 , QM8 , QM10 , QM11 , QM12 , QM15 , QM16 , QM17 , QM18 , QM24 and QM25 , all operated by
16128-410: Was sold in 1985. This site is now occupied by The Corinthian , an apartment complex. A connector between the Queens–Midtown and Lincoln Tunnels was again proposed in 1950, but was dropped for lack of support. Nine years later, Robert Moses proposed adding a third tube to the Queens–Midtown Tunnel to relieve congestion, with a possible extension to Brooklyn. The tube would be located to the south of
16256-465: Was the first time a clay blanket was used on an underwater tunnel project, so digging work was delayed for four months to allow the clay layer to be placed. Officials feared that the tunnel might not open before the end of 1940, as was originally planned. A contract for digging the tubes themselves was awarded in June 1937. The project employed as many as 2,500 sandhogs at a time. Because the work site had such
16384-431: Was to be included in a later project. Civic groups continued to advocate for the canceled Brooklyn spur even after construction started. The federal government tentatively allocated $ 58.3 million for the tunnel's construction in January 1936. The allotment was composed of the RFC loan and PWA grant, and it was expected to be paid off by revenue from tolls and bonds. The same month, the New York State Legislature organized
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