The Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT) is the main gateway for interstate buses into Manhattan in New York City. It is owned and operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ). Colloquially called the Port Authority, the bus terminal is located in Midtown at 625 8th Avenue, one block east of the Lincoln Tunnel and one block west of Times Square.
PABT serves as a terminus and departure point for both commuter routes as well as for long-distance intercity routes, and is a major transit hub for New Jerseyans. The terminal is the largest in the United States and the busiest in the world by volume of traffic, serving about 7,000 buses and 200,000 people on an average weekday. lt has 223 departure gates and 1250 car parking spaces, as well as commercial and retail space. In 2011, there were more than 2.263 million bus departures from the terminal.
The PABT, opened in 1950 between 8th and 9th Avenues and 40th and 41st Streets, was built to consolidate the many different private terminals spread across Midtown Manhattan. A second wing extending to 42nd Street was added in 1979. The terminal has reached peak hour capacity leading to congestion and overflow on local streets. As it does not allow for layover parking buses are required to use local streets or lots or return through the tunnel empty.
The terminal is one of three operated by the PANYNJ, the others being the George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal in Upper Manhattan and the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City. The PANYNJ has been unsuccessful in its attempts to expand passenger facilities through public private partnership and in 2011 delayed construction of a bus depot annex citing budgetary constraints.
Read more about Port Authority Bus Terminal: Capacity and Overflow
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