Holland Tunnel Could Reopen

Port Authority says 'hopeful' for next week

By Chau Lam | STAFF WRITER

September 21, 2001

The Holland Tunnel, which has remained closed to all but emergency vehicles since last week's terrorist attacks, could reopen by next week, a top Port Authority official said yesterday.

"I am hopeful it will be next week," said Ronald Shiftan, the authority's interim executive director.

An average of 100,000 vehicles travel through the Holland Tunnel on a typical weekday, said Pasquale DiFulco, an authority spokesman.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's 12-member board held its regular monthly meeting in midtown at the offices of the Empire State Development Corp. yesterday. The bistate agency that controls airports, bridges and tunnels in New York and New Jersey had held its meetings at One World Trade Center, where about 2,000 of its employees worked between the 61st and 74th floors.

The Port Authority has confirmed that six of its employees, , including two police officers, died in the attacks, and that 68 others are reported missing, including its executive director, Neil D. Levin. Board members held a moment of silence at yesterday's meeting, praying for those who are missing.

The board meeting lasted about half an hour. Shiftan and Port Authority chairman Lewis M. Eisenberg fielded questions from the media.

Shiftan said he has no estimate of how much revenue the Port Authority lost as result of the destruction of the Twin Towers but he said he anticipates having a preliminary figure at the board's next meeting next month.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Transporation Authority said the the 4 and 5 subway lines resumed normal service yesterday with the reopening of the Wall Street station for the first time since last week's attack. Of the 4.5 million daily subway riders, about 24,000 commuters use the station, said Bob Slovak, a New York City Transit spokesman.

But things were not running smoothly. For about 2 1/2 hours yesterday afternoon, the 4 and 5 skipped the Wall Street station, because New York City police were investigating a "foul" odor in that stretch of the tunnel, Slovak said.

It was not immediately clear what the odor was.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey yes-terday

released a list of 74 names of confirmed

dead or missing employees, including Port Authority

police officers. Here are the 66 names not previous-ly

published.

MISSING

Christopher Amoroso, Staten Island, N.Y.

Maurice Barry, Rutherford, N.J.

Robert Cirri, Nutley, N.J.

Clinton Davis, Massapequa, N.Y.