The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has unanimously approved an estimated $10 billion plan to replace the existing 65-year-old bus terminal.
The plan approved Thursday includes an international design competition. The final design will be picked in September.
The plan is build the new station between Ninth and 10th avenues, one block west of the current terminal. Officials plan to sell air rights at the current terminal and the resulting condos, commercial sales and rent will pay for about two-thirds of the cost for the new building, which sources estimate to be $10 billion. The estimate was not included in the project that passed Thursday.
The nation's busiest bus terminal handles more than 200,000 people per day. It's considered outdated and ill-suited for projected increases in traffic in the coming years.
Board members last month were sharply divided on what direction the project should take. But a consensus was reached since then on several fronts.
The plan approved Thursday also would hire a consultant to look at ridership projections and consider how the new terminal would fit in with other transit projects.
