[afavour]

There is no bridge or tunnel. One was started back in the 1920s and parts of it still remain but it was never completed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staten_Island_Tunnel

It’s kind of a political hot potato few want to touch these days. A tunnel feels like a no brainier but a lot of NIMBY types in Staten Island don’t want a fast connection to the rest of the city as it would likely change the area dramatically.

[bootwoot]

It's also very across the harbor between Staten Island and Manhattan. Any bridge or tunnel would be multiple times longer than any other bridge or tunnel in the area (and correspondingly expensive).

[afavour]

The original plans were for a tunnel between SI and Brooklyn. Still probably the most realistic of any plan though it does lose the benefits of a direct connection to Manhattan.

[atyppo]

We should be asking “why not both?” but unfortunately NY construction costs are inflated so ridiculously we can’t even afford one let alone get politicians with a strong enough backbone to support these common sense projects that would alleviate strain on NYC housing stock.