De Blasio to Announce $2.5B Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Line Proposal from Brooklyn Queens Connector

A non-profit advocacy group called Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector has proposed a streetcar line to connect underserved areas of the boroughs. Mayor de Blasio must have heard the clamor because he will be announcing in his State of the City speech that he will be backing the proposal.

The plan of the streetcar line will run 16 miles along the East River, from Astoria to Sunset Park, at a cost of $2.5 billion, which is more expensive than the previous estimate of $1.7 billion. Streetcars will not only serve bustling commercial hubs like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City, but they will also give access to about 45,000 public-housing residents.

The streetcars will operate alongside vehicular traffic and will travel at a speed of about 12 miles an hour. A trip from Greenpoint to Dumbo would only take 27 minutes, shorter than by bus or subway. City officials believe that the cost of the project can be offset by tax revenue collected from a rise in property values along the route.

As the plan of the streetcar line would affect many areas, the neighborhood review process and studies to be conducted will be long. So, the construction will not start until 2019, and will be completed in 2024.

"This is about equity and innovation. We are mapping brand new transit that will knit neighborhoods together and open up real opportunities for our people," de Blasio said.

Today, a travel from Sunset Park in Brooklyn to Astoria in Queens, which is only 12 miles apart, would take 70 minutes on the subway. And if you hop on the bus, it would be more than two hours.

The solution for the lack of efficient public transportation between Brooklyn and Queens has long been a dream of many residents in the city's two most populous boroughs.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced a plan to propose a solution to set up a streetcar line that would connect Astoria and Sunset Park, reported the New York Times.