Westchester Expressway: Panel Pans HOV Lanes

Momentum appears to be swinging against the NY State Department of Transportation's proposal to add one or two high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to the Cross-Westchester Expressway (1-287). In addition to growing business community hostility, the plan was panned by transportation experts at the first meeting of Westchester's new Blue Ribbon Panel on transportation. Invited speaker Dr. James Yarmus, transportation and planning commissioner of Rockland County, focused on the potential of public transit systems in the 1-287 corridor, while a second guest, Raleigh D'Adamo from the City of New Haven, expressed surprise that HOV lanes were being considered given the shape of the corridor and HOV lanes' poor historical performance. Some Westchester transportation officials are said to be becoming interested in the guided busway technology offered by Yonkers Contracting Corp. - several meetings between Yonkers Contracting and the NY DoTs Region 8 {Mid- Hudson) office have also been held recently. Meanwhile, NY State's offer to explore alternatives to HOV lane construction made earlier this year has proven entirely hollow, with no cooperation from NY DOT or the Thruway Authority evidenced to date.

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