Transit Authority

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

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NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

Q: Roughly halfway through the Holland Tunnel, there is an exit sign and a door next to it. Where does the door go?


A: Turns out the door leads to exactly what the sign says: an exit. The Holland Tunnel comprises two 1.6-mile-long tubes, each with two exits: one leading to New York, another to New Jersey. The exits serve two functions. They provide a means of pedestrian escape in an emergency. And maintenance crews may use them to get into the tunnel without their “Cat vehicles,” which would block a lane of traffic.


The Lincoln Tunnel has three tubes and eight exits. Its first tube opened in 1937. Not only are there more exits, but there is a crossover that connects the Lincoln Tunnel’s tubes. The Brooklyn Battery and Queens Midtown tunnels have similar exits.


“For security reasons,” neither Mr. Pascual nor a spokeswoman from the Port Authority would tell me where exactly the exits lead, but assured me they go “to safe places.”


The control centers are manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Unauthorized users would likely be arrested and possibly suspected of terrorist activity. So, late-night thrill-seekers, consider yourselves warned.



Got a question about getting around New York? E-mail transit@nysun.com.

NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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