Section 254. Acquisition of certain toll bridges at the expense of the state

1. If a toll bridge  for  the  traffic  of  vehicles  and  foot  passengers  is  located  on  a state highway or constitutes a connecting
  link between two state routes as  described  in  section  three  hundred
  forty-one of this chapter, or constitutes a part of a state route and is
  included  in  the  description thereof, or constitutes a connecting link
  between improved state highways or constitutes a connecting link between
  a state highway  heretofore  improved  and  a  state  highway  which  is
  indicated  for improvement by section three hundred forty-one, the board
  of supervisors of the county in which such bridge  is  situated,  or  if
  situated  in  two  counties  the  boards of supervisors of such counties
  concurrently,  may,  by   resolution,   petition   the   department   of
  transportation  for the acquisition of such bridge by the state pursuant
  to this section. Within ten days after the passage  of  such  resolution
  the clerk or clerks of the board or boards of supervisors shall transmit
  certified  copies  thereof  to the department of transportation together
  with an estimate of the probable cost of acquiring the same and any data
  in  relation  to  the  value  thereof  which  the  board  or  boards  of
  supervisors may secure.
    2.  The  commissioner  of  transportation  shall  upon receipt of such
  resolution or concurrent resolution, and within three months thereafter,
  investigate  and  determine  whether  the  public  interest  demand  the
  acquisition of such bridge by the state and shall also within said three
  months  approve  or disapprove of such resolution and if such resolution
  be approved shall prepare an estimate of the probable cost of  acquiring
  such  bridge.  If  such  resolution  be  disapproved  the  department of
  transportation shall certify its reason therefor to such board or boards
  of supervisors.
    3. If it be  approved  the  department  of  transportation  is  hereby
  authorized  and  empowered to agree with the corporation owning the said
  bridge upon the compensation which shall be made  to  it  for  the  said
  bridge  and  its  appurtenances,  its  franchises,  its  rights  for the
  maintenance and use of said bridge, and any and all damage  which  shall
  result  to  said  corporation so owning the said bridge by reason of the
  taking of such structure, and such agreement shall be reduced to writing
  and executed by the department of transportation  in  the  name  of  the
  people  of  the state of New York and by the corporation owning the said
  bridge, and filed in the office of the comptroller of the state  of  New
  York.
    4.  In  the  event  that  no  agreement  is  reached  between the said
  department of transportation and the corporation owning the said  bridge
  for  such  purchase as aforesaid, the department of transportation shall
  certify its approval to the attorney general and  transmit  to  him  the
  estimate  made  by the department of transportation of the probable cost
  of acquiring such toll bridge, franchises and rights, and the amount  of
  any  and all damage incurred by such acquisition, together with all data
  the department of transportation may have in its possession in  relation
  thereto.
    5.  Upon  the  receipt  of  such  certificate of approval, if and when
  sufficient money shall have been appropriated by the state therefor, the
  attorney general shall acquire in the name of the people of the state in
  accordance with the provisions of  the  eminent  domain  procedure  law,
  title  to such bridge and the franchise therof; and, in such event, such
  corporation shall have pursuant to the eminent domain procedure law  the
  right  to prosecute in the court of claims which shall have jurisdiction
  in the premises, any claim which it may have for damages for the takings
  of its said property.

    6.  The  amount  agreed  upon   between   the   said   department   of
  transportation  and  the said corporation, pursuant to such agreement so
  filed as aforesaid, or  if  no  agreement  be  reached,  the  amount  so
  determined by the court, shall be paid by the department of taxation and
  finance   upon  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller  out  of  the  moneys
  appropriated for such purpose. Until payment to such corporation be made
  after such agreement of the amount therein agreed to  be  paid  or  upon
  acquisition,  unless the commissioner of transportation shall enter upon
  and take possession of such property as provided by this section,  until
  the  amount  so  determined  by  the court of claims in such acquisition
  proceedings, the corporation owning the said bridge shall be entitled to
  continue in possession and use thereof and of all the rights, privileges
  and franchises enjoyed by it in  connection  therewith,  but  upon  such
  payment  being  made  such  bridge  and  all  rights  and  franchises in
  connection therewith shall become the property of the state of New  York
  and  shall  be maintained by the state as a free bridge and as a part of
  the state system of highways.
    7. If such bridge be acquired by the state pursuant  to  this  section
  the  same  shall  not  be  used  except  as  hereinafter provided by any
  railroad, telephone, gas, electric light, heat or power company  or  any
  other  public  service  corporation  for  any  purpose  except upon such
  reasonable terms and the payment of such reasonable rental to the  state
  as  shall  be  determined by the department of transportation. The money
  received therefor shall be paid into the  state  treasury  and  so  much
  thereof  as  may  be  needed  appropriated  for  the maintenance of such
  bridge. The provisions of this section, however, shall  not  affect  any
  existing  contract  for the use of such bridge by any corporation except
  that the compensation provided for such use in  such  existing  contract
  shall be paid to the state.
    8.  Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, if any such bridge
  be owned by a domestic corporation carrying on the business of operating
  a  railroad  and  which  operates  cars  thereover,  the  department  of
  transportation  in  entering into such agreement or the commissioners in
  condemnation in  making  such  appraisal  and  fixing  such  damages  as
  aforesaid  may  take  into  consideration  any bonds outstanding of such
  corporation  which  may  have  been  authorized  by  the  department  of
  transportation  or  the  predecessor  thereof,  to  be  issued  by  such
  corporation for the purchase of said bridge and its  franchises  or  the
  stock  of any corporation formerly owning the said bridge, and shall fix
  and determine in making such appraisal the amount of any and all  damage
  which will result to such corporation so owning such bridge by reason of
  the  taking  of  the  said  bridge  and  its  rights  and  franchises in
  connection therewith and such corporation when said  bridge  shall  have
  been  acquired  and such compensation paid, and its successors, shall be
  permitted to continue  to  use  said  structure  upon  payment  of  such
  reasonable  rental  to  the state for such use as shall be determined by
  the department of transportation, and  further  provided  that  if  such
  corporation,  or any successor thereof, should desire to use other parts
  or decks of such bridge or to make such use thereof as would require the
  strengthening, reconstruction or  change  of  the  said  bridge  or  its
  approaches,  or  the building of new approaches to the said bridge, such
  corporation or its successors may make such use thereof and  strengthen,
  reconstruct or make such changes in the said bridge or its approaches or
  build  new approaches to the said bridge and use the same in such manner
  upon filing with the department of transportation detailed plans for the
  proposed new use thereof, or for the strengthening, reconstruction of or
  changes in the said bridge or its approaches or for the building of  new
  approaches  to  the said bridge, and upon obtaining the approval of such

  use and plans by the department of transportation and  upon  payment  of
  such  further reasonable rental to the state for any such additional use
  of said structure or such approaches  as  shall  be  determined  by  the
  department  of  transportation; provided further that the entire cost of
  any such strengthening, reconstruction, additions or changes of the said
  bridge or its approaches shall be paid exclusively  by  the  corporation
  making  such use of said bridge and shall be deemed to be an expenditure
  for capital purposes  of  such  corporation  paying  the  same  for  all
  purposes  whatsoever. Any such corporation using such bridge at the time
  of the acquisition thereof by the  state  shall  not  be  debarred  from
  continuing  such  use  by reason of such acquisition; but the failure or
  refusal to comply with such terms or to pay such  rental  shall  forfeit
  the  right of such corporation to use such bridge, and the department of
  transportation is hereby authorized and empowered to close  such  bridge
  to the use of such offending corporation.
    9.  Any  act  or  failure  to  act  on  the  part of the department of
  transportation as in this section provided shall be  reviewable  by  the
  supreme   court  of  this  state  in  the  manner  provided  by  article
  seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules.