Interborough Express Getting Boost Thanks to Congestion Pricing

By Peter Aronson

It’s been just over a month since the congestion pricing program in New York City and we are already seeing story after story about how commute times are going down, traffic in the lower half of Manhattan is speeding up, and first responders are responding faster. 

Another major benefit of the program will come in the form of billions of dollars in funding for mass transit, and one project that’s on the move, dubbed the Interborough Express (IBX), has the potential to bring congestion relief and convenience to residents of Brooklyn and Queens. 

The proposed $5.5 billion IBX, a light-rail transportation system, would run alongside an existing freight line railroad track in a semicircle from Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, with a total of 19 stations, passing through Metropolitan, Atlantic, Flatbush and New Utrecht avenues among them, ending at the Brooklyn Army Terminal.

The rail line would connect the “ethnically and economically diverse communities of Sunset Park, Borough Park, Kensington, Midwood, Flatbush, Flatlands, New Lots, Brownsville, East New York, Bushwick, Ridgewood, Middle Village, Maspeth, Elmhurst and Jackson Heights,” an MTA fact sheet explains, with the daily ridership expecting to reach 115,000, or 40 million annually. The rail corridor is home to approximately 900,000 residents and 260,000 workers within a half mile of the proposed line.

Despite sharing a border, the two boroughs are notoriously challenging to travel between on mass transit, with subway routes taking residents first into Manhattan before heading to their destination. 

This will be a “game-changer” for residents of Queens and Brooklyn, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. said, explaining that the project will provide mass transit for communities that historically lacked it and unlock “economic opportunities for residents on both sides of the Queens-Brooklyn border.” 

In 2023, Gov. Hochul announced the start of the environmental review process. In January 2024, the governor announced $45 million for initial engineering studies. So far, there have been 35 project meetings with elected officials, stakeholders and the public to discuss the project, study the options and then revise the plans going forward.

This fall, the project took a significant step forward when the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) released a Request for Proposals to solicit consultation bids to begin the preliminary engineering phase for  IBX. This process is expected to take two years.

The current plan would connect communities in Brooklyn and Queens to 17 subway lines, 51 bus routes and the Long Island Railroad at the East New York station. Needless to say, it would reduce travel time between boroughs, allowing residents and workers to avail themselves of mass transit instead of driving, reducing their carbon footprints.

Funding for the preliminary engineering project will be awarded under the MTA’s 2020-24 Capital Plan. An additional $2.75 billion for further project development and the start of construction is included in the MTA’s approved 2025-29 Capital Plan, the MTA said in its release. The additional $2.75 billion would still need to be obtained.

NYLCV looks forward to working with our elected leaders, state and federal agencies, other environmental advocates and affected parties to make sure the Interborough Express gets full funding and comes to fruition in a reasonable period of time.

Peter Aronson, a volunteer writer at the New York League of Conservation Voters since September 2022, is a former journalist and retired attorney. He is the author of Mandalay Hawk’s Dilemma: The United States of Anthropocene, a novel for middle-grade readers about kids fighting global warming. Kirkus Reviews, in a starred review, wrote: “A scathing work and an essential blueprint for youth battling climate change.” To read more about Peter, visit his website www.peteraronsonbooks.com or to purchase his book, click here.