Press Releases
For Immediate Release: March 15, 2004
THRUWAY/MTA ISSUE ORIGIN AND DESTINATION SURVEY SUMMARY
Summary Part of Tappan Zee Bridge/I-287 Environmental Review Process
The New York State Thruway Authority and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority/Metro North Railroad today issued an executive summary of the results of the Origin and Destination Survey conducted as part of the Tappan Zee Bridge/I-287 Environmental Review.
Approximately 90,000 surveys were distributed in April 2003 to eastbound auto and transit travelers across five Hudson River crossings and select transit systems operating within the I-287 Corridor. More than 11,000 surveys were returned, which is almost three times the number needed for statistical accuracy. Over the past nine months, Team members compiled the data and determined where travelers’ trips originated, where they ended as well as the preferred route.
The survey found that on an average weekday 80,457 people crossed the Tappan Zee Bridge heading eastbound. Of these, 98 percent (79,107 people) crossed in automobiles and 2 (1,350 people) percent crossed in express buses. Fifty one percent of these trips (41,396) over the Tappan Zee Bridge ended in Westchester County and about 28 percent (22,215) ended in New York City.
Additionally, 65 percent of the trips (52,268) across the Tappan Zee Bridge originate in Orange and Rockland Counties, with 42 percent (33,670) coming from southern Rockland County alone.
This information provides the Team with a snap shot of the current travel pattern and will be useful as the study moves forward in determining which of the proposed alternatives best serves the needs of the public within the Corridor.
The next step in the review process is to run the 15 scenarios through the Level 2 Screening Criteria, the results of which should be a handful of new alternatives comprised of the best elements of the original 15 which meet the study’s goal of addressing corridor congestion. The next round of public workshops is tentatively scheduled for early spring.
The survey summary can be found on the study web site – www.tzbsite.com. The entire summary will be made available in hard copy at the two Community Outreach Centers in Tarrytown and Nyack. Directions to these centers can also be found on the web site.
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