MTA to start work on the Interborough Express

The northernmost of the nine stations of the Interborough Express, also known as IBX, will be in Jackson Heights, Queens.

That’s where MTA officials announced Tuesday that they could begin the planning work on the 14-mile light-rail line to be built on existing freight tracks.

It’s intended to provide a direct connection between underserved communities in Brooklyn and Queens.

“It makes no sense that the five million people that live in Brooklyn and Queens have to go to Manhattan to reach the other borough,” MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said.

The preliminary work was made possible, with an additional $67 million added to the current capital plan — $52 million from this year’s state budget and a $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“First, it will get us all the way through the federal environmental review that’s necessary to advance the project. Second, it will give us what we need to compete for federal funding that’s critical to getting the project built,” Jamie Torres-Springer, president of MTA Construction and Development, said. “And third, it gets us to the next step. The next step is having a builder get started on delivering the IBX.”

But even when the preliminary work is done, there is still a question mark about funding for building the IBX.

There is $2.7 billion in the next capital plan to build it. However, there are also question whether the governor will approve that plan.

And with the MTA saying the priority is keeping the system running, the IBX could become the first cut to that next capital plan.

“There’s no question that means that expansion, and it’s not only the IBX, but some other expansion projects that we thought of as being worthy as part of that $68 billion would be at risk,” Lieber said.

But leaders believe the IBX is worthy of the funding, for cutting commute times and helping the economy.

“Gone are the days where you have to look to Manhattan to find work,” Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said. “Instead, the IBX is a direct investment in making both Queens and Brooklyn boroughs where you can live, work and play without having to leave and I can’t express the importance [of] coming out of the pandemic.”

The design and environmental review is expected to take two years, according to officials.