BAY RIDGE – THE MTA AT a Tuesday press conference announced new steps towards building the long-anticipated Interborough Express, or IBX, commuter train, which would connect southern and eastern Brooklyn neighborhoods with Queens via a light rail running on existing freight train tracks between Bay Ridge and Jackson Heights, reports NY1. The preliminary planning stage, anticipated to take two years, will begin soon, and an RFP has been issued for design and environmental review contractors; although there are fears that the MTA’s budget issues could impact the train’s ultimate construction timeline, planning work has been fully funded by the state budget and federal grant money, according to the agency.
The MTA also announced that it had likely scrapped heavily criticized plans to run a portion of the IBX along surface streets in Middle Village, a move originally intended to avoid building a costly and potentially damaging tunnel under All Faiths Cemetery. MTA construction head Jamie Torres-Springer on Tuesday said the tunnel plan is now favored by the agency, following consultation with the cemetery, with MTA chief Janno Lieber adding that this could shave off five minutes or more from the trip.
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