The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) awarded a $5.6 million grant to the state to make improvements to areas along the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE).
The funding will go towards advancing numerous concept proposals for the expressway’s North (from the Kosciuszko Bridge to Sands Street) and South (from Atlantic Avenue to the Verrazzano Bridge) corridors.
Among the plans for the areas include accessibility upgrades, reducing “the environmental, social, and economic burdens" for disadvantaged residents, and reconnecting communities that have long been divided by the Robert Moses-era urban highway, according to a release.
This work is part of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ BQE Corridor Vision initiative, which aims to invest in the communities that surround Brooklyn’s only interstate highway.
In an effort to progress the project, New York Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez both highlighted the importance of the initiative to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg back in September 2023, asking him to consider federal funding disbursement.
“We are grateful to the Biden Administration for answering our call and recognizing the critical importance of rectifying the generations of harm caused by the BQE to the Brooklyn communities we represent," said Jeffries, Velázquez, and New York Congressman Dan Goldman through a joint statement.
