New York Construction Report staff writer
A $4-billion rehabilitation of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway’s aging central section was announced this week, with construction expected to begin in 2030.
The 10-year project would overhaul BQE Central, the city-owned portion of the highway between Atlantic Avenue and Sands Street in Brooklyn. The structure is about 20 years beyond its original design life and carries about 130,000 vehicles a day.
NYC DOT expects to begin the project’s environmental review this fall. The process will include public information meetings and a formal public scoping period, followed by preparation of an environmental impact statement.
The city expects to complete the environmental impact statement in summer 2028, with construction scheduled to begin in 2030.
The rehabilitation is intended to extend the structure’s service life by about 40 years while keeping the highway open during construction.
Work will center on the BQE’s three-level cantilever, where years of heavy traffic and exposure have contributed to deteriorating concrete, exposed steel and extensive corrosion.
“We are fixing the triple cantilever,” said NYC Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn. “Confronting the reality of cracked concrete, exposed steel and extensive rust damage simply cannot wait for another blue-ribbon commission.”
The construction plan includes building a temporary two-level bypass along Furman Street below the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, extending from Atlantic Avenue to Columbia Heights. The city says the temporary structure would be no higher than the existing Queens-bound highway and would not block views from the promenade.
A second temporary elevated roadway would run from Columbia Heights toward the Brooklyn Bridge approach and the Manhattan Bridge, allowing the existing BQE to remain open during the rehabilitation and reduce the amount of traffic diverted onto Brooklyn’s local streets.
The rehabilitation would include repairs to concrete and other structural components, along with upgrades to drainage, railings and lighting.
“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,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said.
The city estimates that delaying the project would add about $160 million to the cost each year because of construction price increases.
Officials are also highlighting planned transit improvements, including the Interborough Express, bus service upgrades and the Brooklyn Bus Network Redesign, as ways to provide alternatives to driving and reduce pressure on the highway network.
The BQE was built through Brooklyn neighbourhoods during the era of master builder Robert Moses. City officials acknowledged the highway’s history while arguing that the condition of the structure requires immediate action.
“The cost of inaction is too high, and the risks to New Yorkers are too important to delay any longer,” Mamdani said.
