Holland Tunnel $364M Repair To Start On Time Despite Coronavirus

TRIBECA, MANHATTAN — The Holland Tunnel will begin closing down for $364 million in Hurricane Sandy repairs on schedule next month despite the coronavirus pandemic, officials said this week.

The project, first announced in 2018, will close parts of the tunnel for four years as the Port Authority repairs damages from Hurricane Sandy and puts in new resiliency measures to protect the New York-New Jersey connector's portals and vents from flooding.

Port Authority officials told Patch on Tuesday that the work will start in April as originally planned despite the coronavirus crisis.

Construction will start on April 20 with full nighttime closures of the tunnel's southern tube, which brings traffic from New Jersey into Manhattan. The tube will be closed from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. on weekends, except on Saturday, until 2022, according to a presentation to Manhattan Community Board 2's Traffic and Transportation Committee.

The northern tube, which brings traffic from Manhattan to New Jersey, will close when work on the southern tube is done, around spring 2022, officials said. That closure will also last about two years and close the tube six nights a week, from 11 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. on weekdays and 12:01 a.m. to 9 a.m. on weekends.

Officials said almost all traffic will be diverted to the Lincoln Tunnel during the closures.

On the Manhattan side, a five-foot buffer area will be set up between the construction and the sidewalk near its entrance. The sidewalk will stay open, officials told the community board.

Community Board 2 agreed Thursday on a resolution that asked the Port Authority minimize noise during construction for Manhattan residents as much as possible, set up a hotline for people that want access to project information and appoint a community liaison who will be available for them to contact.