NYSA says Bayonne Bridge timing critical

   The New York Shipping Association Monday lauded a request by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to expedite federal review of plans to raise the roadbed of the Bayonne Bridge so that larger ships can pass beneath it.
   Last Friday the port authority submitted to federal officials a formal request that the project be considered for expedited review under President Obama’s executive order on permitting and federal review.
   “In making this unprecedented effort, the port authority is sending a strong and very important message to the ocean carriers and cargo interests who use the Port of New York and New Jersey. We also thank President Obama for issuing the executive order allowing for enhanced permitting and review of projects of national and regional significance.” said Joseph C. Curto, president of New York Shipping Association, in a statement. “The timing of this project has always been a critical issue to our members; this effort significantly places the Bayonne Bridge in a vital and positive spotlight adding another component of expediency to the port authority’s efforts.”
   The project would increase the navigational clearance beneath the bridge from 151 feet to 215 feet. Port interests say the higher clearance is important for big containerships expected to call more frequently after the Panama Canal is expanded.
   Obama’s order sets up a Steering Committee on Federal Infrastructure Permitting and Review Process Improvement that is supposed to “facilitate improvements in federal permitting and review processes for infrastructure projects in sectors including surface transportation, aviation, ports and waterways, water resource projects, renewable energy generation, electricity transmission, broadband, pipelines, and other such sectors.”
   The committee is to develop a concrete plan to coordinate, implement and institutionalize improvements across the board; requiring that nationally and regionally significant projects be tracked on a public Federal Infrastructure Projects “dashboard.”
    The White House has ordered federal agencies to submit by April 30 a list of nationally and regionally significant infrastructure projects to be publicly tracked on the dashboard. — Chris Dupin