CBS Local reports that “Mayor Bill de Blasio and officials” have announced the long awaited plan for the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. The plan would shrink the highway from three to two lanes in each direction, which is projected to reduce traffic volume by eleven percent. Resurfacing and waterproofing of the cantilever structure would make it safe for another twenty years. The Mayor also said there is an “overarching plan” that “involves limiting oversize trucks, using waterways to transport freight, and more.”
Update: Thanks to reader Andrew Porter, here’s a link to the Mayor’s press release, which gives more detail.
Second Update: Here’s the Brooklyn Heights Association’s statement on the BQE plan:
“Across the nation, the destructive effects of urban highways are being recognized and addressed. The transformation of the BQE, one of New York City’s most decrepit and polluting transportation corridors, is of critical importance to the future of our city. The Coalition for the BQE Transformation (BQET) applauds the immediate measures which DOT is taking to ensure the safety of the Triple Cantilever because this plan buys New Yorkers time to develop a truly visionary solution to what has been a political hot potato for more than twenty years. But the planning to reverse the negative environmental, economic, and public health impacts of the BQE must begin now, and we will hold the city to its commitment to move forward immediately with structured and substantive engagement with all the communities along the BQE corridor. The BQET looks forward to working closely with DOT during this interim repair process to accommodate a host of near-term pollution, environmental, safety, and connectivity improvements. Today’s announcement is an important step in the right direction.”
