The Interborough Express is one step closer to bridging numerous transit-deprived neighborhoods across Brooklyn and Queens, as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Wednesday approved the project’s full design. At its monthly board meeting, the MTA awarded a nearly $166 million design contract to the joint engineering venture Jacobs/HDR, according to amNY. The two-year agreement will begin preliminary design development and includes a “comprehensive scope of work”—such as surveys, geotechnical and environmental investigations, and structural inspections—to move the project forward.
Engineers will also participate in third-party negotiations and public outreach, according to MTA officials. Total construction costs for the IBX are expected to be $5.5 billion, with another $432 million for train cars, according to Time Out.
“The joint venture was selected because of its strong leadership team, thoughtful management approach, its comprehensive understanding of corridor constraints, and its extensive experience performing the work of comparable magnitude and complexity,” Charles Gantz, project executive for the IBX, told amNY.
Construction work will commence in two phases: first, preparing the corridor through demolition, utility relocation, and tunnel work; then, installing tracks, building stations, and constructing a new maintenance yard.
Stretching 14 miles from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, to Jackson Heights, Queens, the transformative project would repurpose the existing Bay Ridge Branch rail line and have an end-to-end travel time of just under 40 minutes. The IBX would also connect underserved neighborhoods to 17 subway lines and 51 bus routes, significantly cutting travel times between the two boroughs.
These neighborhoods include Sunset Park, Borough Park, Kensington, Midwood, Flatbush, Flatlands, New Lots, Brownsville, East New York, Bushwick, Ridgewood, Middle Village, Maspeth, and Elmhurst.
The IBX has the potential to improve more than just transit access. A June analysis by the New York Building Congress found that land-use changes along the proposed route could allow for more than 70,000 new homes to be built within a half-mile of the line. However, these changes would face significant hurdles, as the IBX will run through diverse neighborhoods with varying residential densities and local willingness to welcome new homes.
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s first unveiled plans for the IBX in her 2022 State of the State address, building on decades of speculation to transform the existing rail line between the boroughs into public transit.
In early 2022, the MTA conducted a feasibility study that found the completed train line would serve anywhere between 74,000 and 88,000 riders daily. In January 2023, the MTA said it would use light rail for the IBX, with Hochul claiming it would “provide the best service for customers at the lowest cost per rider,” according to a press release.
Over the course of last year, the plan had been revised to ensure the fastest and most affordable service for passengers, with the MTA leaning towards a design that features a tunnel beneath All Faiths Cemetery on Metropolitan Avenue in Middle Village, instead of a previous proposal that would have placed train cars alongside vehicular traffic.
The MTA had previously dismissed the tunnel idea, claiming that the existing tunnel beneath the cemetery was too narrow to fit both light trail and existing freight operations, and would require digging under people’s graves, according to QNS.
However, the MTA dismissed the idea before even talking to cemetery officials. As reported by QNS, Brian Chevanne, director at All Faiths, said in January 2024 that the transit agency had never reached out about the proposal, and he had previously endorsed running trains through the tunnel instead of the street.
Last October, the MTA issued a request for proposals (RFP) for the preliminary engineering and design phase of the IBX, and began an environmental review with the federal government. Officials expect this phase to take roughly two years to complete.
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