Good afternoon! I’m Kara Gurl, Planning and Advocacy Manager at the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA (PCAC).
This month marked another important milestone for the Interborough Express: officially kicking off the environmental review process and getting started with formal project scoping. The IBX is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to connect Brooklyn and Queens neighborhoods with much faster trips, and it’s also a chance to show that the MTA can build new things with the development of our first light rail project. We encourage riders to speak up at the MTA’s upcoming scoping meetings to weigh in on the details of the project, station locations, and reasons why the IBX will benefit you. We’ll have more to say in the coming weeks about just how transformative the IBX will be for riders, the city, and even for the MTA itself.
There’s a lot to be optimistic about with the MTA’s capital projects, but we remain alarmed by the actions of USDOT and the federal government that risk holding New York back. Withholding $18 billion for the Hudson River Tunnel Project and phase two of the Second Avenue Subway – combined with their decision to withhold critical antiterrorism and public safety money for the MTA – are the latest examples of their blatant efforts to punish New York and New Yorkers.
Tens of thousands of jobs hang in the balance and hundreds of billions in economic activity are at stake should these projects fail to move forward. These jobs and essential projects support not just New York but the entire region, and the working men and women who depend on them. We stand with Governor Hochul and the New York Congressional Delegation and urge them to fight this unconstitutional injustice with every ounce of their strength. We encourage you to continue the work that needs to get done, and thank you for keeping riders moving in times of uncertainty.