From Staten Island bridges to buses, trains, ferries, and all other notable modes of transportation. A look at the future, modern, and history of Staten Island's public transportation network.

The Bayonne Bridge, looking west

During the early part of the twentieth century, residents requested that a bridge be built which would simplify the commute into Bayonne, New Jersey from Staten Island. The governors of both New York and New Jersey accepted their request and sanctioned the Port of New York Authority to have the bridge built. On September 18, 1928, construction commenced, using the designs of Othmar H. Ammann and Cass Gilbert. By November of 1931, construction was complete and the bridge opened on the 15th of that month in the neighborhood of Port Richmond, making it the longest steel-arch bridge in the world. Over the years, of course, longer bridges have been built, but it is still currently in the top five, being the fourth-longest in the world and the second…

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Staten Island's gateway to the east.

Verrazano-Narrows Bridge looking tward Ft. Wadsworth

Ten years before the consolidation of New York in 1898, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad had announced that the North Shore Railroad in Staten Island would have a railroad switch which would lead to a tunnel across the Narrows and into Brooklyn. Financial difficulties, however, prohibited the project from being put in motion. In 1910, another attempt at a crossing along the Narrows was considered-this time as a 260-foot-high bridge. The military dismissed this idea, as they believed the bridge would be a nuisance during wartime.

By 1913, another plan for a tunnel was proposed. After being accepted, the project was started in 1923. However, just like the first tunnel attempt, this project was discontinued due…

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