NYC considers turning blighted areas beneath the BQE into vibrant public spaces

New York City’s transportation department on Wednesday announced that it is considering a slew of projects to turn the blighted areas beneath and around the traffic-choked Brooklyn-Queens Expressway into public spaces New Yorkers might actually enjoy.

The concepts were published in a 154-page report by the Department of Transportation, which was the product of two years of public outreach. They include converting the space under the highway at Park Avenue in Fort Greene into a hub where delivery workers can charge their e-bike batteries and store their vehicles. Another idea would redesign the dizzying intersection beneath the BQE at West Ninth Street to make the area safer for pedestrians and cyclists and less confusing for drivers.

The report also considers a proposal that has been discussed for years: capping the trenched sections of the highway in Carroll Gardens, Williamsburg and Bay Ridge to build parks and public spaces above the roadway.

“What the DOT engaged in is a large grassroots effort to get the voice of those who live every day in the shadow of the BQE and hear from them exactly what their concerns are, their visions, their plans, many of which they’ve been thinking through for years, so that we can put them together and pick out a few of them and take them to the next stage,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Meera Joshi.

While capping sections of the highway is considered a long-term project requiring years of engineering, outreach and federal funding, officials said some of the other smaller projects could be completed at little cost to taxpayers.

The report notes the BQE is a crucial traffic artery used by 150,000 vehicles daily. But it also says the highway harms residents’ quality of life across Brooklyn and Queens.

“The BQE’s infrastructure has come at the expense of communities and neighborhoods alongside the highway: It acts as a physical barrier, divides neighborhoods and limits connections for pedestrians and bicyclists,” the report states. “The highway poses challenges to the safety, accessibility and environment of the communities it traverses.”

Officials said they will tap into a $5.6 million federal grant to further study the proposals in the report before moving forward with any ambitious redesigns.

Marco Carrión, executive director of the Williamsburg environmental justice organization El Puente, said he wants the city and state transportation departments to move forward with solid plans for the BQE that turn some of the renderings in the report into reality.

“We still have not yet seen a joint commitment from city and state DOT in pushing forward a comprehensive approach and transformative vision to this corridor that invests in alternative measures that make our communities healthier, safer and less dependent on this infrastructure,” Carrión said in a statement.

The release of the report comes as city transportation officials continue to mull over a final design to rebuild the dilapidated triple-cantilever section section of the BQE in Brooklyn Heights. Officials have delayed a decision on that project for more than five years, but say they plan to begin construction in 2029.