SIEDC West Shore Light Rail

With huge development anticipated for Island's West Shore, the Staten Island Economic Development Corporation (SIEDC) refuses to let its West Shore light rail proposal die. (Image courtesy of the SIEDC)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- With huge development anticipated for Staten Island's West Shore, the Staten Island Economic Development Corporation (SIEDC) refuses to let its West Shore light rail proposal die.

Steve Grillo, the SIEDC vice president, has been championing the service over the past decade, garnering support from virtually every local politician without successfully finding a financial sponsor.

"It's been really good in terms of support," he said. "We recently had the letter of support from [U.S. Senators] Gillibrand and Schumer's office. So that's great having both senators on board. All local elected officials have supported this. So right now the obstacles are the transportation agencies."

The rail line would run a 13.1-mile route along the Island's West Shore, with stops from Richmond Valley to Elm Park. The proposed line would carry Island commuters to the Bayonne Bridge to connect with New Jersey Transit's Hudson Bergen Light Rail Line.

Currently, the SIEDC needs $5 million to conduct an alternative analysis study. A necessary step to receive any federal funding, the study would offer a comprehensive look at the proposal that would determine the most feasible mass transit options for the corridor.

Grillo anticipates about 9,000 new jobs coming to Staten Island over the next four to five years, citing the Brooklyn Brewery West Shore facility and the Charleston movie studio, among other possible business ventures.

"The study will take two years," he said. "If we don't start studying it now, what happens five years from now when we've got thousands of new jobs here?"

Grillo has talked about the plan with the state and city transportation commissioners in the past to no avail. He's also spoken with high-ranking officials at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which is currently dealing with its own funding quagmire.

The authority's $32 billion capital program is facing a $15 billion funding gap. Still, MTA's Island board member Allen Cappelli says that the MTA should be able to find money for the study.

"The funding needed is pittance," said Cappelli. "We're talking spare change that fell into the MTA's sofa, which is why it's so appalling that it hasn't been picked up."

On the city level, there's also been more chatter about improving bus-related mass transportation options, like select bus service, the city's version of bus rapid transit (BRT).

Generally, officials favor BRT because of its flexibility and relative low cost of operation. In its purest form, BRT would run like a rail line on wheels. The buses would travel in their own designated lane -- such as the BRT service provided in post-war cities like Curitiba, Brazil -- but could also digress onto local roads if necessary.

Grillo criticized the city's watered down select bus service, calling it "bus rapid transit light, at best."

"Until New York City actually has a modern bus rapid transit system with dedicated lanes and buses traveling at 60, 70 miles an hour, than you don't have true bus rapid transit," he said. "Trying to cover 13 miles, you need to move people more quickly. Buses are versatile, but buses are moving 30 miles an hour.

"We need 21st century solutions for 21st century problems," said Grillo, reiterating the SIEDC's catchphrase for the rail line. "What we're getting from our agencies are out-of-date ideas."

Grillo is continuing to explore funding avenues through federal and public-private partnerships. He's also eyeing a piece of the state's $5.4 billion surplus, which the governor has said he'd like a portion of spent on one-time infrastructure projects.

"We're asking for one-tenth of 1 percent of the surplus," Grillo said. "For a half million residents who have the longest commute in the nation, how could the agencies not fund this?"