As you know, this year, your favorite regional business publication has been profiling South Jersey’s “People to Watch” for the past two years.
  Now we’ve turned our attention from “people” to “projects.” Specifically, we’re going county-by-county and looking at the development and redevelopment Projects to Watch, including:
  • the five most important projects completed in the last 12 months,
  • the five most important projects underway, and
  • the five most important projects on the drawing board.
  We started with Burlington County, but—before we move on to the next county on our list—we’re taking a break to look at what’s been going on at the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA).
  As with all lists, we know that we’ll inevitably overlook some important efforts—just as we missed a few important people. But that’s the nature of lists. And you can help us be as complete as possible be letting us know about any projects in your county that you believe belong on our list. Just drop our publisher, Jenny Ryan, a note with the details at jenny@snjbp.com
  Now, here’s our list from DRPA:
  $1 billion 5-year Capital Program:
  • Re-decking of the main span of the Walt Whitman Bridge.
  • Continuing the de-leading and repainting of the Ben Franklin and Walt Whitman bridges.
  • Rehabilitating the PATCO vehicle fleet.
  • $142-million Capital Program for 2010:
  • $6.5 million for Ben Franklin Bridge Deck Truss Rehab.
  • $300,000 to improve traffic flow on the West Side of the Ben Franklin Bridge heading into Vine Street in Philadelphia.
  • $25 million to begin the redecking of the Walt Whitman Bridge
  • $300,000 for the design of express E-ZPass on the Commodore Barry Bridge.
  • $1.5 million to install express E-ZPass on the Betsy Ross Bridge.
  • $500,000 for the planning, design and construction of a Traffic Management Center.
  • $11.5 million for security enhancements at the Ben Franklin Bridge, Commodore Barry Bridge and PATCO.
  • $3 million for construction of the North Ferry Terminal in Camden.
  • $1.6 million to upgrade the Penn’s Landing Ferry Terminal in Philadelphia.
  • $12 million for the PATCO Power Cable and Pole Line Replacement Project.
  • $9.6 million for PATCO concourse improvements at the four stations in Philadelphia along with City Hall and Broadway in Camden.
  • $21.5 for the PATCO car rehab design and the beginning of rehabilitating the entire fleet.
Bridges:
  • Completed the Commodore Barry Bridge Joint Replacement Project, which involved replacing 74 compression seal joints. With this project complete, PENNDOT moved forward with its project to construct new ramps connecting the Commodore Barry Bridge to I-95 and the Chester, Pennsylvania Waterfont. This project is expected to take approximately two years to complete.
  • Received $2 million from the Transportation Security Grant Program for security improvements on the Ben Franklin Bridge. The grant was administered by the Department of Homeland Security.
  • Continued work on the Commodore Barry Bridge Vessel Collision Protection project.
PATCO:
  • Launched the FREEDOM to Save Program, which offers retailers, restaurants, service providers and other companies a unique opportunity to reach out to new customers. Program participants offer discounts or other perks to users of PATCO’s FREEDOM card. More than 100 businesses in South Jersey and Philadelphia have signed up to participate.
  • Presented recommendations for the extension of light rail in Southern New Jersey from Camden to Glassboro. At this same event, DRPA officials were joined by NJ Governor Jon S. Corzine as he endorsed the three component approach, including the extension of the light rail system from Camden to Glassboro, the addition of bus rapid transit along routes 42 and 55, and the improvement of the Atlantic City Rail Line connection between Southern New Jersey communities, Atlantic City and Philadelphia to increase access to Atlantic City Airport. The endorsement came at the end of a two-year Alternatives Analysis and planning study undertaken by DRPA to identify transportation needs and solutions for Southern New Jersey. The study concluded that expanding transit choices would improve accessibility to jobs and employment centers, reduce roadway congestion and enhance connectivity to recreational areas. In an effort to bring the plan to the public, open house events were held shortly after the announcement.
  • Voted to re-open PATCO’s Franklin Square Station, which closed 30 years ago due to low patronage. However, in recent years significant development has occurred in the area of the station prompting the Board’s decision to re-open the Franklin Square Station. 
  • Authority officials along with SEPTA and State and local elected officials from Pennsylvania announced the Locally Preferred Alternative for the Philadelphia Waterfront Transit Expansion project. Plans call for Light Rail Service along Market Street between City Hall and the Delaware River Waterfront initially serving Pier 70 to the South and SEPTA’s Route 15 Trolley at Girard Avenue to the North. Locations served would include: Independence Mall, the Market East Regional Rail Station, City Hall, the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Reading Terminal Market, PATCO and SEPTA’s 8th and Market Street stations, numerous other transportation facilities, Penn’s Landing and other residential, employment, and entertainment destinations along Columbus Boulevard. This project is also very scalable with the potential for future expansion south to the Navy Yard and Sports Complex, north to the North Delaware River Waterfront and even further west along Market Street. 
Philadelphia Cruise Terminal:
  • Kicked off the 2009 cruise season with the Norwegian Majesty returning for its seventh straight year of cruising from Philadelphia. The cruise schedule included four sailings to Canada/New England in September and four sailings to Bermuda in October.  
RiverLink Ferry:
  • Welcomed Hornblower Marine Services back for its sixth consecutive season to operate the RiverLink Ferry. The RiverLink Ferry operated daily between Memorial Day and Labor Day, offering its express concert service from May through September. For the year, ridership totaled 165,512.