As much as Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration has tried, a proposal to connect Brooklyn and Queens via streetcar has not garnered much support from neighborhoods that the streetcar would pass through. But as part of the plan to raise more awareness about the Brooklyn-Queens Connector (BQX), as the project is known, the NYCEDC has released an animated video highlighting some of the benefits of the streetcar proposal.
Once the administration decided that they really wanted to move forward with what once seemed like a pipe dream, the city began hosting “visioning sessions” with local residents last summer. At present the city’s Economic Development Corporation and the Department of Transportation are in the midst of a feasibility study and an alternatives study, the latter of which will likely hope to establish that this $2.5 billion project is the best way to solve the connectivity problems between Brooklyn and Queens.
Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park, and Red Hook have all expressed skepticism about the project—some complained that it would spur gentrification and others questioning whether the cost and discomfort during construction will be worth it for the 50,000 daily commuters that the city expects will use this service if it is eventually up and running by 2024.
The administration still has quite some time to try to convince locals about the streetcar as the public approvals process hasn’t yet gotten underway. But for now enjoy the new animated video.
Loading comments...