Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

Established on April 30, 1921 as the Port of New York Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a government interstate agency that runs most of the transportation infrastructures including the bridges, tunnels, airports and seaports within the New York-New Jersey Port District starting at the center of the Statue of Liberty for a 1,500 square mile area. In 1972 the name of the agency and its form of operation were changed to their present form.

Airports operated by the Port Authority include John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport, both of which are located in the Borough of Queens in New York City, Newark Liberty International located in Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey and Teterboro Municipal in Teterboro, New Jersey.

Other facilities managed by the Port Authority include the Lincoln Tunnel, Holland Tunnel and the George Washington Bridge, which connects Manhattan and northern New Jersey. The Goethals Bridge[?] and the Outerbridge Crossing[?] (previously the Arthur Kill Bridges[?], currently the Staten Island Bridges[?]), the Bayonne Bridge[?], the Port Authority Bus Terminal[?] and the George Washington Bridge Bus Station[?]; the PATH (Port Authority Trans Hudson[?]) rapid transit system; the NY/NJ port; and a number of real estate projects including the World Trade Center site.

The Port Authority also operates its own police department which is responsible for providing safety and deterring criminal activity at Port Authority-owned and operated facilities.

Although the Port Authority does run a good portion of the transportation structures, some bridges, tunnels and other transportation facilities are operated independently of the Port Authority, including the Staten Island Ferry by the New York City Department of Transportation[?], bridges, tunnels, buses, subways and commuter rail by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority[?], and buses, commuter and light rail by New Jersey Transit Corporation[?].

200 Port Authority employees including Executive Director Neil D. Levin and 30 Port Authority police officers were killed in the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack.

External links

• Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Website (http://www.panynj.gov)