New Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar Would Whisk You From DUMBO to Red Hook in 20 Mins, Mayor Says

BROOKLYN, NY — NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio isn’t letting the haters dull his excitement over plans for a $2.5 billion streetcar between Brooklyn and Queens.

After releasing an initial fact sheet on the 16-mile Brooklyn-Queens Connector (BQX) earlier this month, the mayor followed up Tuesday with a more tangible timetable for his fancy new dream line. (Perhaps to counter skepticism that the streetcar would be more of a tourist trolley than a working man’s commuter train.)

“With a majority of the streetcar service operating in a reserved right of way, the average rider on the BQX will save 15-20 minutes each way compared to their current transit options,” the Mayor’s Office claimed in press release.

Among the most drastic cuts to commute times would be for passengers traveling between Astoria and Williamsburg; Queensbridge and the Brooklyn Navy Yard; and DUMBO and Red Hook.

Full timetable below.

And here’s everything else we know about the BQX — again, verbatim from the Mayor’s Office.

The Route

• The BQX would run along a 16-mile corridor through Astoria, Ravenswood, Long Island City, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Brooklyn Navy Yard, DUMBO, Downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Red Hook, Gowanus and Sunset Park.

• The BQX will link to 13 NYCHA developments with more than 40,000 tenants — roughly 10 percent of the City’s public housing residents.

• The route ties together several “innovation clusters” in which the city has made significant economic development investments, including the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Brooklyn Army Terminal, and the Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island via a ferry connection.

• The Administration will begin engaging communities along the Brooklyn-Queens waterfront this year to develop the new service’s exact route, operations and a phasing plan for implementation.

Ridership and Fares

• The BQX will be one of the largest urban streetcar systems in the United States — with an expected weekday use rate of almost 50,000 travelers when fully constructed.

• The fare on the Brooklyn Queens Connector will be the same as a single-ride Metrocard.

Finances

• The preliminary estimate for the purchase and installation of the system is approximately $2.5 billion. The City will raise capital through the creation of a non-profit with the authority to issue tax-exempt bonds. The City is expected to pay off this debt by capturing a percentage of the increase in values of existing and new development along the corridor.

• When built out, fares from riders are expected to cover approximately two-thirds of yearly operating costs. The City will consider additional revenue streams, such as advertising, to offset remaining costs.

Economic Impact:

• Construction of the streetcar and new development along the corridor are projected to create 28,000 temporary jobs by 2045.

• The BQX will generate over $25 billion in economic impact to New York City over the next thirty years.