The NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) has said in an official letter to a local elected official that it has proposed the Korean War Veterans Parkway (KWVP) as a potential truck route, a move that could put big trucks on what is now a scenic, somewhat low-traffic corridor on Staten Island.
In a Sept. 1 response to Staten Island Council Member Frank Morano’s June inquiry, DOT Staten Island Borough Commissioner Roseann Caruana said the parkway is currently designated as a “state parkway” under state regulations and prohibits commercial vehicles, including big rigs, from using the roadway.
However, the transit agency has something different in mind for the parkway’s future.
“DOT proposed the KWVP as a potential future truck route, contingent on the required state and local processes,” Caruana wrote in her letter to Morano.
Morano became concerned after first learning of the proposal to open the parkway to trucks at a public meeting about reconstruction of the thoroughfare in June, sending a series of formal letters to both state and city agencies seeking clarification regarding any proposals discussed about the KWVP.
“My biggest concern is whether this actually gets trucks off residential streets or whether it creates a new freight corridor that brings more truck traffic into the South Shore,” the council member said. “So if we’re taking trucks that are already here and taking them off neighborhood streets and onto the parkway, there may be a real benefit.”
But if making the parkway more accessible to commercial traffic results in increased truck traffic on the Outerbridge Crossing, which connects Staten Island to Perth Amboy, NJ, and traveling into borough neighborhoods, that raises other concerns, he said.
“That’s a very different story,” Morano said. “Then, there are the practical concerns. You have congestion. Safety. Noise. Wear-and-tear on the roadway.”
The westbound lanes of the Korean War Veterans Parkway on Staten Island.Photo via Google Maps
The city transit agency said it is considering the parkway proposal because it provides a “direct and efficient connection” between the Outerbridge Crossing and the Staten Island Mall commercial area. Designating the road for trucks could allow commercial vehicles to avoid traveling on local streets, DOT said.
“Based on existing conditions, the full extent of the corridor poses no issues with respect to height or weight-related restrictions,” Caruana said.
A lack of transparency from the city and state
Both city and state transit agencies have not been forthcoming with providing updates to elected officials and the public on the proposal, Morano said. He added that he does not want to pre-judge the issue — whether or not trucks should be allowed on the parkway without conducting studies first — but he wants both the state and city to address his concerns.
“There is still this strange disconnect here,” Morano said. “When we questioned state DOT representatives at that Community Board 3 meeting, they indicated they weren’t aware of plans to allow trucks on the parkway. So how can that be? Now, you have city DOT confirming that it proposed exactly that.”
amNewYork emailed New York State DOT to ask whether the agency has a state-side update regarding the proposal and is awaiting a response.
amNewYork also asked the NYC DOT what the next steps are regarding the KWVP proposal and whether public input will be part of the process before any work begins, but a spokesperson only responded that the agency “will have an update soon on our proposed truck route network redesign.”
Parkway repair work begins Sept. 14
Staten Island Council Member Frank MoranoPhoto by Barbara Russo-Lennon
News of Morano’s response comes as the state is set to begin reconstruction work on the crumbling parkway beginning Sept. 14.
As part of the nearly $38 million job, the KWVP will be reduced to a single lane between the West Shore Expressway and Wainwright Avenue as work originally scheduled for the summer resumes. The project will resurface about 17.3 lane miles of the parkway in both directions and is expected to be completed by the end of 2029, weather permitting.
State officials said the work will take place on weekdays between 10 p.m. and 3 p.m. Work will remain in the southbound lanes through early next year before shifting to the northbound lanes for the remainder of the project.
Whether the reconstruction is being done to accommodate possible truck traffic, in addition to improving maintenance and safety, is unclear.
Meanwhile, questions still remain about whether using the parkway would primarily shift trucks already traveling through residential areas onto major roadways or potentially create a new freight corridor that could increase truck traffic in the borough’s South Shore.
“Before anyone makes a decision, I want a real traffic study that answers whether this would take existing trucks off our local streets or bring additional truck traffic onto Staten Island,” Morano said. “I want city DOT and state DOT talking to each other. I want the results made public. And I want the community and their elected representatives at the table before a decision is made, not after.”