George Washington Bridge Bus Station

Coordinates: 40°50′56″N 73°56′18″W / 40.84889°N 73.93833°W / 40.84889; -73.93833

George Washington Bridge Bus Station
view of the station from the northwest (2013)
Location	between Ft. Washington & Wadsworth Aves, and W. 178th & W. 179th Sts. Manhattan, New York City United States
Owned by	Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Operated by	Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Platforms	Upper Level Gates A through E.
Connections	New York City Subway: 175th Street ( train) 181st Street ( train)
Construction
Architect	Pier Luigi Nervi
Other information
Website	GWBBS
History
Opened	January 17, 1963
Closed	Aug 2014 renovations.
Traffic
Passengers (2015)	6.9 million

George Washington Bridge Bus Station is a commuter bus terminal located at the east end of the George Washington Bridge in the Washington Heights area of Manhattan in New York City, New York. The bus station is owned and operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. On a typical weekday, approximately 20,000 passengers on about 1000 buses use the station.^[1]

The building, an example of 1960s urban renewal, has been described as a blight on its surrounding environment^[2] and "a brutal assault on the senses".^[3] Its upper-level bus ramps block light, as well as the view of the George Washington Bridge, from an entire block of Fort Washington Avenue;

Major renovations, including an expansion of retail space from 30,000 to 120,000 square feet (2,800 to 11,100 m²), have been in progress with an expected cost of more than US$183 million.^[4] The work started in late 2013 and is expected to be completed in the early winter of 2016.^[5][6]

Architecture

The station is built over the Trans-Manhattan Expressway (Interstate 95) between 178th and 179th Streets and Fort Washington and Wadsworth Avenues, and features direct bus ramps on and off the upper level of the bridge.

The building was designed by noted Italian engineer Pier Luigi Nervi and is one of only a few buildings he designed outside of Italy.^[7] It opened January 13, 1963 as a replacement for a series of sidewalk bus loading areas that existed between 166th and 167th streets further south.^[8] The building is constructed of huge steel-reinforced concrete trusses, fourteen of which are cantilevered from supports in the median of the Trans-Manhattan Expressway, which it straddles. The building contains murals as well as busts of George Washington and Othmar Amman, the civil engineer who designed the bridge. The building received the 1963 Concrete Industry Board’s Award.^[9]

The building's roof trusses have been described as resembling butterfiles,<ref "huxtable">Huxtable, Ada Louise (June 15, 2004). "A Landmark Destination: The Bus Station". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 25, 2016. </ref> though this butterfly-like doubled-triangle view can be seen only if the trusses are viewed or photographed from above, an angle only available to aircraft passengers or to maintenance workers atop the New York tower of the nearby George Washington Bridge.

The first floor of the bus terminal will have additional space for stores. (all undergoing major renovations.) and a passenger waiting area.

Renovation

A renovation project is currently underway in the terminal. The project is expected to cost US$183 million. The project is a partnership between the Port Authority and a private company known as GWBBS Development Venture, LLC.^[10] Tutor Perini received a $100 million construction contract in August 2013. Construction, which was repeatedly delayed, began at the end of 2013; the project is expected to be completed in the late spring of 2017.^[5][6][11]

The renovated building will be improved with better access to local subway stops, displays of bus departure and arrival times, and central air conditioning. It will increase retail space from 30,000 to 120,000 square feet (2,800 to 11,100 m²) with large tenants like Marshalls, Key Food, and Blink Fitness.^[4] It will be fully ADA compliant for accessibility to those with disabilities.^[12][13][14]

Accessibility

Some portions of the terminal are wheelchair accessible, but many of the bus platforms are not. In addition, the New York City Bus' M4 route provides wheelchair accessible service to Fort Tryon Park bus accessing the bus stop one block south of the station, continuing inside the park to the Cloisters Museum when open.

New York City Subway

The complex is served by the 175th Street station of the New York City Subway, located on Fort Washington Avenue, with entrances at 175th Street and 177th Street, the latter one block south of the bus station. The subway station, operated by the New York City Transit Authority and served by the A train, was part of the Independent Subway System (IND)'s first line, the IND Eighth Avenue Line, which opened in 1932.

The bus station is also within walking distance of the 181st Street station of the same line, and the 181st Street IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line station on the 1 train.

Bus service

The station seen from the western approach in 2006

As of 2016, the bus lines detailed below serve the terminal for the New York City Transit Authority, New Jersey Transit, Coach USA (Rockland Coaches and Short Line) and Ameribus.^[15] Service is also provided by Spanish Transportation with its Express Service jitneys.^[16]

MTA Regional Bus Operations

Local buses stop at a lower level and on the streets outside the station. Local service includes:

• M4 on the Ft. Washington Av side, M5, M100 and Bx7 (outside the station on Broadway)
• M98, Bx3, Bx11, Bx13, Bx35 and Bx36 (on 178th & 179th streets between Ft Washington Av and Broadway). The Bx13 serves Yankee Stadium.

New Jersey Transit

Aerial view of station and I-95

Coach USA

Rockland Coaches

Short Line

Ameribus

^[17][18]

See also

• Port Authority Bus Terminal
• Journal Square Transportation Center
• George Washington Bridge Plaza, across the bridge in Fort Lee, New Jersey

References

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to George Washington Bridge Bus Station.

• GW Bridge Bus Station home page
• NJ Transit route finder
• Rockland Coaches
• ShortLine Bus

MTA Regional Bus Operations
Routes	Bronx (Bx-) Brooklyn (B-) Manhattan (M-) Queens (Q-) Staten Island (S-) Express (X-, BM-, BxM-, QM-) Select Bus Service
Fleet	Current Retired Past demo
Transit center hubs	165th Street Coney Island Eltingville Fordham Plaza George Washington Bridge Jamaica Center Ridgewood St. George Staten Island Mall Victor A. Moore Williamsburg Bridge Plaza
Other	Access-A-Ride Bus depots Bus lanes Bus stop signage Bus Time Fares Guide-A-Ride MetroCard Transportation in New York City
Official website

Greater New York region bus transit
Transportation in New York City Mass transit in New York City
Operators	New York Public MTA Regional Bus Clarkstown Dutchess Long Beach Huntington Kingston Nassau Poughkeepsie Putnam Roosevelt Island Suffolk Rockland Ulster Westchester Private Academy Coach USA Community Olympia Rockland Short Line Suburban Hampton Jitney Hampton Luxury Liner Leprechaun Liberty Monsey NYC Airporter Pine Hill / Adirondack / New York Trailways Spanish Veolia New Jersey / Pennsylvania Public NJ Transit Bus Rutgers Lehigh and Northampton Monroe County Private A&C Academy AmeriBus Broadway Coach USA Community Olympia Rockland Short Line Suburban DeCamp Greyhound Lakeland Martz Susquehanna Trans-Bridge Connecticut Connecticut Transit Stamford New Haven Waterbury Norwalk Bridgeport Housatonic Area Milford
Routes	New York Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Staten Island Express within NYC Dutchess Nassau Putnam Rockland Suffolk Ulster Westchester New Jersey Bergen / Passaic Essex / Hudson / Union Mercer Middlesex / Monmouth / Morris North Jersey to NYC Special event and park-ride Suburban Connecticut Bridgeport Danbury New Haven Norwalk Stamford Pennsylvania Lehigh and Northampton Monroe
Defunct operators	New York Caravan Transit Varsity & Command Fifth Avenue Coach (earlier 5th Ave Transportation) Green Jamaica Liberty Madison Avenue Long Island New York Bus New York City Omnibus New York Transportation North Shore Queens Surface Soundview Steinway Surface Triboro Atlantic Express New Jersey PABCO Public Service / Transport of New Jersey
Transit centers	New York City 165th Street Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue Eltingville Fordham Plaza George Washington Bridge Jamaica Center Port Authority Ridgewood Intermodal St. George Victor A. Moore Williamsburg Bridge Plaza Long Island Mineola Intermodal Rosa Parks Hempstead Hudson Valley New Rochelle Petrillo Plaza White Plains New Jersey Broadway (Paterson) Exchange Place Hackensack Hoboken Terminal Irvington Journal Square Lakewood Passaic Red Bank Ridgewood Weehawken