Second Ave Subway Phase 2 Eligible For Federal Grant, Pols Say

EAST HARLEM, NY — Plans to extend the Second Avenue Subway line up to 125th Street in East Harlem cleared a major funding hurdle this week, local congressional representatives announced.

The Federal Transit Administration issued a "medium-high" rating for the project Thursday, which makes the project eligible for federal funding through a New Starts grant, Harlem Congressmember Adriano Espaillat announced. The lawmaker described the ruling as a "green light" for federal funds.

"I call on the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to move this project into engineering and construction as soon as possible," Espaillat said in a statement. "The East Harlem community has waited too long to fill this transit desert."

The MTA has applied for $2 billion in federal funding — about a third of the project's total cost — to extend the Q line up Second Avenue with new stops at East 106th, 116th and 125th streets. The line's current northernmost stop is East 96th Street in the Upper East Side.

A medium-high rating is the cutoff for projects to receive federal funding through the New Starts grant program. Construction on the second phase of the Second Avenue Subway project can begin when the FTA approves the project's advancement to the engineering phase.

An FTA spokesperson confirmed that the rating means the Second Avenue Subway's second phase is eligible "to advance through the FTA Capital Investment Grants program."

"As the CIG program is a multi-year, multi-step process, FTA will continue to work with NYMTA as they work toward completing additional federal requirements in law," an FTA spokesperson said in a statement.

The MTA has been trying to get federal funding for the Second Avenue Subway's second phase for about two years. The FTA issued a "Finding of No Significant Impact" for an updated Environmental Impact Statement for Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway in November 2018, opening up the project to federal funds.

President Donald Trump has also signaled his desire to help the project. In August, Trump tweeted that he was "looking forward to helping New York City and Governor [Andrew Cuomo] complete the long anticipated, and partially built, Second Avenue Subway." Days after the tweet, Cuomo set up a call with Department of Transportation Elaine Chao.

The Second Avenue Subway's first phase was completed on New Year's Day of 2017. The project re-routed the Q line up Second Avenue with new stops at East 63rd Street, East 72nd Street, East 86th Street and East 96th Street. Phase two extends the new Q line up to East 125th Street where it will connect with the Metro North Railroad and could be extended into the Bronx. Phases three and four will extend the line downtown to Hanover Square in the Financial District.