Plan options for a multi-billion dollar project to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge were on display this week at an open house in Greenburgh. According to the Journal News, many of the 300 people who attended were supportive of the improvements to mass transit and construction jobs the project will create, while others had questions and concerns regarding the impact on traffic congestion and noise levels.

The First of six possible bridge configurations. (Source: Tappan Zee Bridge/I-287 Corridor Project.)The final six possible bridge configurations are each far larger in width and span than the current Tappan Zee and include dedicated lanes for cars and buses, railroad tracks (or the space to add them later) and a shared-use pedestrian and bicycle path.

The project also includes plans to: add bus rapid transit from Suffern to Port Chester; see the construction of a new passenger train line across Rockland, into Westchester and Grand Central Terminal and integrate bus rapid transit into downtown White Plains.

In one scenario, a tunnel would be built under residential Tarrytown to provide for passenger trains between Manhattan and Rockland. Building a longer, deeper tunnel that would cut noise would cost almost $1 billion more. The project will most likely face a "lot of discord" from residents. They may find themselves up against the Iron Workers Union, whose workers face 30 percent unemployment. Members say the project "Would create thousands of construction jobs at a time we're desperate for [them]."

The new bridge's cost is estimated at $6.4 billion (in 2012 dollars), but some bridge configurations could add $600 million. Engineers said that final configuration would be decided in a "couple of months." If the money for the bridge and highway improvements is secured, construction on them could begin as early as 2013.