New York’s first new rail system in 100 years, the Brooklyn Queens Connector (BQX), will bring sustainable mass transit to some 700,000 workers and residents. Following a preliminary study conducted last fall, New York City Economic Development Corporation retained HDR to assess the BQX’s streetcar/light-rail alignment, which connects a dozen neighborhoods along the East River waterfront.
HDR completed a rapid assessment in five weeks and is currently engaged in conceptual design, which is expected to be complete this August. The company prepared capital-, operations- and maintenance-cost estimates, ridership forecasts and estimates of value creation and capture. It also assessed vehicle technology, identified potential sites for vehicle maintenance and storage facilities, and proposed phasing options.
The result was a 16-mile alignment at a cost of $2.5 billion. Construction on the streetcar system could begin as early as 2019. When fully operational, BQX is expected to serve some 50,000 travelers each weekday by 2035 and generate about $26 billion in economic impact during the next 30 years.
“The BQX will travel through one of the oldest parts of the city, where streets are narrow and not always continuous. It’s an old network along the waterfront and we want to put as much alignment as we can in a dedicated right of way,” Lawrence Lennon, HDR’s New York-based Planning & Environment Department leader and BQX project manager, said.
Share on:
