Good morning. It’s Monday. Today we’ll look at how a light rail line that’s in the planning stage could connect neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens in new ways.
With 472 stations and 665 miles of track, the subway system brings New York City together, but not in every part of town. There are neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens that the subway doesn’t join to the rest of the city. That’s why connectedness is a big part of the promise of the $5.5 billion Interborough Express light rail project, or IBX. The 14-mile line would bring transit connections to some of the city’s neighborhoods in areas that have been long been joined by Manhattan-centric subway lines — or by cars, for people who have them. “It’s a new alignment,” said Sam Sklar, an urban planner and transit consultant. “It rethinks the city.” The fare would cost the same as a subway ride. It’s not hard to see the possibilities for the IBX, which would run next to a freight line that carries lumber, beer and other cargo. Officials say the IBX would let people from Brooklyn and Queens move directly through and between the city’s two most populous boroughs. Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, is a major supporter of the project. She said in August that it would “transform New York, connecting communities like never before.” It would also provide faster and easier connections to the rest of the city on 17 subway lines, 50 bus routes and two Long Island Rail Road stations. Transit planners like Sklar say the IBX would also bring new access to jobs. Roughly one million people and 250,000 jobs can be found within a half-mile of the route, and more jobs could follow. A planned transfer to the LaGuardia Airport shuttle bus could shorten the time it takes Brooklynites to get to the boarding gate. More than 160,000 riders are expected to use the IBX every day. It would be the biggest rail expansion in New York City since the crosstown G subway line (originally the GG) was completed nearly 90 years ago. The IBX stations in Brooklyn would be the first new transit stops in that borough since 1948. In Queens, the new IBX stations would be the first in nearly 40 years. But it will be different from the Second Avenue subway extension in Manhattan: The IBX will be a mostly outdoor light rail line, operating with slimmer and smaller cars than the ones on the subway system. Last month the M.T.A. said that it had started the 18-month environmental review process that will figure in how the IBX takes shape. The agency has scheduled sessions for public comments, including one this week in Middle Village, Queens, and two on Zoom on Nov. 12. Half of the cost has been set aside by Hochul. It’s unclear whether the Trump administration will cover the balance. Last month Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary, said he was withholding $18 billion in funding already allocated for the Second Avenue subway extension and railroad tunnels under the Hudson River. Who would ride the IBX
My colleague Stefanos Chen writes that perhaps no group could benefit from the IBX more than the city’s Bengali community. The new line would bring connectedness to two commercial centers that might as well be in different states right now — Kensington in central Brooklyn and Jackson Heights in north-central Queens. Ali Najmi, a Pakistani American lawyer for the mayoral campaign of Zohran Mamdani, even coined the name “Bangladeshi Express” for the route. Syeda Akter, a longtime Kensington resident originally from Bangladesh, said it would shorten her trips to the shops she likes in Queens. When she goes there for the Bengali dessert kalakand, she has to take the F train nearly 30 stops through three boroughs, a ride that can last well over an hour. With the IBX, the same trip could take less than 25 minutes, according to the M.T.A. The IBX would take shoppers in the other direction, too. Kazi Fouzia, who lives in Jamaica, Queens, another Bengali hub, buys groceries in Kensington (where she also works) because the prices are lower for items like mangoes and lychees. And then there’s romance. In Kensington and nearby Borough Park, men make up about 60 percent of the Bengali population. In Jackson Heights, women are a majority. But Councilwoman Shahana Hanif, whose district includes Kensington, said that interborough romance hadn’t been practical. “In our friend circle, we would say that’s a long-distance relationship,” she said. Who would live near the IBXThe IBX could spur construction in places where developers have already bought rights to build near or even above the route. That could help alleviate the city’s acute housing shortage. The New York Building Congress, an industry trade group, estimates that more than 70,000 new homes can be built within a half mile of the IBX line over the next decade if the city approves some land-use changes. Residents’ concerns about a building boom may come up at the M.T.A.’s comment sessions this week and next. Some residents of neighborhoods near the line worry that construction would change the demographic picture by bringing in wealthier newcomers and displacing lower-income people. WEATHER Mostly cloudy, with a chance of showers in the afternoon and a high of 60. Tonight will be clear, with a low of 47. ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING In effect until Tuesday (Election Day). The latest Metro news
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Dear Diary: I could hardly believe I was about to run the New York City Marathon. It was 2011, and I had come to the city from Wisconsin, where I was living then. As we waited to cross the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, the loudspeakers began to blast Frank Sinatra’s version of “New York, New York.” Tears filled my eyes. Then the starting gun went off. The race was on. Hours later, after 26.2 miles, I crossed the finish line in Central Park. It was dark and cold, and the crowds had thinned. It took forever to shuffle through the finish chute and out of the park. There were no cabs anywhere; the streets were still closed for blocks. I walked and walked, shivering and starving, my post-race euphoria fading fast. Out of pure desperation, I ducked into TGI Fridays on Fifth Avenue. Wrapped in my silver space blanket with my medal around my neck, I must have looked ridiculous. The bartender looked up. “Did you just run the marathon?” I nodded. “Hey, everyone,” he called out. “This lady just ran the New York City Marathon!” The whole bar cheered. The bartender grinned. “Beer’s on the house,” he said. Just like that, I wasn’t cold anymore. — Joan Kappes Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Tell us your New York story here and read more Metropolitan Diary here. Glad we could get together here. See you tomorrow. — J.B. P.S. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. You can find all our puzzles here. Lauren Hard and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at nytoday@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
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