NEW YORK CITY— New York City plans to begin a $4 billion reconstruction of the city-owned section of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in 2030, nearly three decades after the highway's design life expired.
The project would rehabilitate the deteriorating BQE Central between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street, a section that carries about 130,000 vehicles a day.
The City plans to keep traffic moving during construction by building temporary highway bypasses rather than shutting down the BQE and diverting thousands of vehicles onto Brooklyn streets.
The work would extend the structure's design life by about 40 years, according to Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the New York City Department of Transportation.
"For decades, prior administrations have failed to deliver urgent long-term repairs to BQE Central — but we can no longer afford to wait for the perfect solution," Mamdani said.
The City estimates that every additional year without action adds $160 million in escalation costs and increases the risk of a forced shutdown.
A closure could push a large share of BQE traffic onto neighborhood streets, including about 13,000 daily truck trips.
NYC DOT plans to construct two temporary bypasses around the work zone.
The first would run along Furman Street from Atlantic Avenue to Columbia Heights, beneath the Brooklyn Heights Promenade.
The temporary, two-level roadway would rise no higher than the existing Queens-bound highway, allowing the promenade to remain open.
A second elevated bypass would run from Columbia Heights across the Brooklyn Bridge approach toward the Manhattan Bridge.
The temporary roads would allow crews to work on sections of the existing highway while maintaining a route for vehicles traveling through Brooklyn.
The plan also calls for repairs to the highway's drainage system, railings and lighting.
The centerpiece of the existing structure is the triple cantilever, an unusual three-level concrete highway structure that carries traffic above the Brooklyn waterfront.
Decades of exposure and heavy use have left portions with cracked concrete, exposed steel and extensive rust damage, according to NYC DOT.
The BQE connects major parts of Brooklyn and carries a large volume of commercial traffic through the borough each day.
The City also wants to preserve access to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade and Brooklyn Bridge Park during construction.
The City and State are pursuing separate investments in neighborhoods along the BQE, particularly communities near State-controlled sections that have experienced the highway's effects.
Projects include a redesign of Third Avenue in Sunset Park, $17 million in capital improvements on Park Avenue in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, and $26 million for the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway in Gowanus and Red Hook.
The greenway work was completed earlier this year.
The City and State also are investing in transit projects intended to reduce dependence on cars, including the planned Interborough Express, a proposed rail connection between Sunset Park and Jackson Heights.
Not for several years.
NYC DOT plans to begin the City Environmental Quality Review process this fall. The agency expects to conduct public scoping and community meetings before completing an environmental impact statement in summer 2028.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2030 and last about 10 years.
Public meetings and the environmental review process are expected to begin this fall.
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