Brooklyn-Queens Expressway panel delivers long-awaited recommendations
Repair cantilever now and reduce BQE traffic lanes, while protecting promenade and Brooklyn Bridge Park, group says.
The BQE panel appointed by Mayor Bill de Blasio recommended starting emergency repairs immediately while removing one third of the highway’s lanes, in its long-awaited report on rebuilding the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The report was released Thursday night following a presentation to the community.
The panel, led by Carlo Scissura, president and CEO of the New York Building Congress, made three key recommendations:
- Repairs to a decrepit 1.5-mile segment of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway must begin immediately. This finding is based on new data the panel called “alarming,” showing that the stretch, which includes the triple cantilever underpinning the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, may become unsafe within the next five years. NYC DOT could begin maintenance of some sections as early as this spring, and closure of the road for extended periods may be necessary.
- The highway must immediately be reduced from six lanes to four lanes to reduce traffic volume by 15 percent and create shoulders to handle disabled vehicles. The city’s congestion pricing program, the return of split-toll collection on the Verrazano Bridge and other strategies will reduce traffic, allowing the lanes to be eliminated. Overweight trucks — currently estimated to be at least 11 percent of those using the highway — must also be prohibited, as they are accelerating the deterioration of the highway.
- Planning for a transformational re-envisioning of the entire BQE corridor from Staten Island to Queens must start immediately, as it could take two decades to carry out. The multi-billion dollar project requires state and federal agencies and elected officials to form a joint working group to carry out its planning and funding.
The panel’s long-term goals reflect a new mindset in transportation planning: reducing the use of vehicles and maximizing use of public transit; providing alternatives for local freight; protecting the environment and promoting quality of life in adjacent communities.