Latest news with #LIRR-owned
New York Post
01-08-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Long-promised Brooklyn-Queens rail link is finally moving forward — but won't be complete till the 2030s
It's finally getting on track. The long-awaited light rail connection between Brooklyn and Queens has now moved into active development, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday — but the project won't be complete until at least the 2030s. Hochul, during an event along the abandoned rail line that will become the Interborough Express, or IBX, celebrated the MTA's board this week advancing the expected $5.5 billion project into its design phase. 'We're turning these old tracks into something remarkable,' she crowed. 'A clean, fast, 14-mile light rail line – a connection between Brooklyn and Queens like never before.' 5 Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday that a long-promised Brooklyn-Queens rail link is now in its design phase. James Messerschmidt She also highlighted estimates that an end-to-end trip along the line will only be 32 minutes. 'Riders will save 30 minutes each way. If you're a round-trip commuter, guess what? That's an hour back in your life.' Proposals to build a Brooklyn-Queens rail service have percolated for nearly three decades, but only seriously advanced when Hochul announced in 2022 that an underused freight line would be converted into the Interborough Express. The planned line would create 19 stations, connect 17 subway lines, 50 bus routes and two Long Island Rail Road hubs along its track from Sunset Park, Brooklyn to Jackson Heights, Queens, officials envision. The IBX would also be the Big Apple's first light rail line, as well the first end-to-end rapid transit built entirely in the city since the line that became the G train opened in 1937, officials said. 5 The Interborough Express will run from Sunset Park to Jackson Heights. MTA/ Governor Hochul 5 The IBX will run from Brooklyn Army Terminal to Roosevelt Avenue. MTA 5 The project is expected to cost $5.5 billion and be the city's first light rail line. MTA Drone footage and photos released by MTA officials Friday give a bird's-eye view of the proposed route, including the LIRR-owned Bay Ridge Branch and the CSX-owned rail line Fremont Secondary. The route winds through tree-lined, largely forgotten rail beds in both boroughs, with several bridges and tunnels that could present design difficulties, officials said. But beyond broad strokes and a $2.75 billion commitment so far by Hochul, no serious engineering and design work had been done on the project – until MTA board members Wednesday selected Jacobs and HDR to be design and engineering team, with a $166 million contract. 'Thanks to $166 million dollar state investment, that means a lot of planning is going to occur – looking at the stations, tracks, vehicles signals – so we can get shovels in the ground and make this become a reality,' Hochul said. 5 The route follows an existing, although largely forgotten rail line. MTA / Trent Reeves The design phase will be the last before construction begins, officials said. The project is expected to be completed in the 2030s. Hochul promised that whenever it's finished that New Yorkers will have fewer travel hassles flitting between Brooklyn and Queens. 'The outer boroughs are now joined so that there's not a requirement that if you want to go see your mother in Queens from Brooklyn that you won't have to go into Manhattan first,' she said.
Time Out
05-06-2025
- Business
- Time Out
Amtrak's first-ever one-seat train will connect Long Island to the rest of civilization
Say goodbye to the Penn Station shuffle. For the first time ever, the national railroad has announced plans for a direct, one-seat (a.k.a. no-transfer) train route connecting Long Island to Washington, D.C., and other Northeast Corridor cities. The proposal would extend three daily Northeast Regional roundtrips east from Penn Station to Ronkonkoma, with stops in Jamaica and Hicksville, creating a seamless link between the island and the mainland U.S. Translation: No more juggling the LIRR, NJ Transit and the PATH just to get to Philly. The plan, first revealed at Amtrak's May 22 board meeting and reported by Gothamist, wouldn't launch until at least 2030 and hinges on several factors—namely, the completion of East River Tunnel repairs and the arrival of new Airo trains, which can run on both overhead catenary and third-rail systems. Nicole Bucich, Amtrak's vice president of network development, confirmed the demand: 'We're not just competitive, we're probably faster and we're getting people to the center of the city.' She added there's strong interest in direct service from Long Island to D.C., Philadelphia and New Jersey. The proposed service is still in early planning but would run three daily off-peak trains east from Penn Station to Ronkonkoma, and three westbound trips back to D.C., totaling around five hours per ride. The federal government has listed the corridor as one of 69 priority routes for expansion, and Amtrak has applied for up to $500,000 in funding to conduct a technical study. This wouldn't require building new stations or major infrastructure, but it would require the MTA's cooperation. Amtrak relies on LIRR-owned tracks, and the two agencies are already at odds over tunnel closures impacting LIRR service. For now, the MTA says it's cooperating with the study. Commuter advocates say this modest step could finally inch the region toward long-desired 'through-running' service, integrating NJ Transit and LIRR so passengers don't have to switch at Penn. It's an idea long championed by former NYC Transit president and current Amtrak exec Andy 'Train Daddy' Byford.
