NJ commuters beware — Garage collapse in New York City

After a parking garage collapsed in New York this week, killing one person and injuring several others, many regular commuters are rightfully rethinking where to park.

We were flooded with calls including a former NYC building inspector who knew about the specific building which collapsed. Without knowing exactly what the cause was before a thorough investigation, there was some speculation about the cause. From the video and pics, there is a visible high number of SUVs parked on the top tier of the garage that collapsed.

The former inspector talked about regular inspections that only allow inspectors to walk through and observe. It's entirely next level to have an invasive inspection that would get to the bottom of what might make a building vulnerable.

The concern is that there are many buildings in New York and other cities that are old enough to raise concerns. Problems like weather and water in particular plus lack of resources to maintain repairs, cars banging into walls and columns, and the added weight of much heavier electric vehicles. Add it all up and there is certainly a reason to be concerned.

The advice we got on the show? Avoid the garages that are overloaded by parking cars on the ramps and look for parking in underground lots beneath residential buildings. They tend to be the most updated and inspected. All good advice if you're taking the trek into the city.

For me, with no need to commute to NYC any longer, I'm gonna wait until the mayor decides to start supporting law enforcement and stop coddling criminals and ignoring crime before I start regular visits again.

How about you? More or less likely to visit NYC? Will you change your commuting habits given the garage failure? Hit us up on the free New Jersey 101.5 app and let us know!

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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