BQE Corridor Vision

New York City is moving forward to fix the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) in Brooklyn. The BQE is a vital part of our transportation system and economy – we can and must immediately start working on a community-driven plan for the safe, modern, resilient roadway we need. To create a vision for the BQE Corridor, The New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) worked with communities along the BQE corridor on two initiatives:

1. BQE Central will fix the City-owned structure from Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street
2. BQE North and South will identify upgrades for all other segments of the BQE corridor in Brooklyn.

Community engagement guided the City's decisions about the future of the full Brooklyn BQE Corridor at every step in the process. To hear from as many people as possible, NYC DOT offered a variety of ways to provide input, both online and in-person, at various times to accommodate varying schedules and preferences.

BQE North & South

NYC DOT is committed to reconnecting Brooklyn communities divided by the BQE. Neighborhoods like Sunset Park, Gowanus, Red Hook, South Williamsburg, and Greenpoint have been separated by the Moses-era highway, leading to increased noise and air pollution while also limiting access to jobs and other needed resources.

The BQE to the north and south of Atlantic Avenue to Sands Street in Brooklyn is owned by New York State. NYC DOT is working with NYS DOT to create a partnership that can bring real and valuable change to the North and South Brooklyn corridors.

In 2024 NYC DOT released its final report, BQE North and South Report: Safe, Sustainable, Connected outlining the city’s vision for the reimagined BQE North and South corridors. Proposed projects include a range of recommendations for the highway as well as City-owned adjacent streets, including:

• NYC DOT projects on City-owned streets
• Other City-lead projects on City-owned streets
• NYS DOT projects on the highway that require ongoing coordination with the State
• Multi-agency effort to explore viable alternative routes for freight to reduce truck traffic

Community Engagement Process

NYC DOT led a multi-pronged outreach effort resulting in feedback from thousands of participants. Outreach participants were invited to suggest project types and provide feedback on preliminary design concepts.

NYC DOT completed three rounds of community engagement from Fall 2022 to Winter of 2023. Outreach done by NYC DOT included virtual and in-person workshops, an online survey, online interactive feedback maps and focus groups that convened experts in relevant disciplines.

Alongside this outreach, a Community Visioning Council (CVC) was created to advise NYC DOT and its consultants on engagement content and strategies. Composed of community leaders from a diverse group of organizations, the CVC met regularly with NYC DOT throughout the engagement process and worked to activate their constituencies in said process.

Finally, a Community Partner Program was created to help lead education and/or engagement activities that expanded upon and proceeded in parallel with planned NYC DOT-led engagement. 18 partner organizations were given financial support to facilitate further engagement for the BQE Corridor Vision.

BQE North and South Report

The 2024 Final Report divided the BQE North & South into seven focus areas (South 1-4 and North 1-3). Design concepts were categorized as near, medium or long-term proposals based on the needed resources, coordination and estimated time it would take to complete.

For specifics on design proposals made by NYC DOT, please see pages 18-72 of the report.

The BQE Corridor Visioning Process has been completed. To see a history of NYC DOT's public engagement, direct to this page:  virtual and/or in-person workshop

For the most recent BQE Updates, visit NYC DOT's website here: NYC DOT - BQE Central Project