Throughout the comment period for the Xanadu environmental impact statement, environmentalists, transportation watchdogs, and editorial boards have been citing flaws in the traffic analysis. Xanadu consultants have responded by promising a more comprehensive traffic study and extending the public comment period until June 30.

The developers could head off some criticism if they offer significant transportation mitigation. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign, Sierra Club and Environmental Defense offered suggestions in a recent letter to the NY Meadowlands Commission and Xanadu consultants. Measures include:

Bus access to the site: Xanadu developers should develop and fund bus rapid transit and regular bus service to the site from NYC, and major centers in Hudson Bergen, and Essex counties. That would require a central Xanadu bus terminal, not minimalist stops at the far edge of huge parking lots.

XBL expansion contribution: The developers should contribute to expansion of the Lincoln Tunnel express bus lanes.

Reduce parking supply and cash out parking: The Xanadu developers should encourage transit use to the site by reducing total parking supply, sharing parking between uses, and charging visitors and workers for parking. They should offer cash in lieu of a parking space as an employee perk. The employees could then use this money for transit or parking costs as desired.

Percentage of profit for transit operating costs: Currently, the developers are not required to contribute to plans for a rail link into the Meadowlands-Xanadu site. They should pay half of the construction costs of the link, and allocate a designated portion of their profits to the rail link’s annual operating costs.