The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has revealed new renderings for the Interborough Express, a new light rail line connecting Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and Jackson Heights, Queens. The $5.5 billion light rail line will span 14 miles from the Brooklyn Army Terminal to Roosevelt Avenue, yielding 18 fully accessible stations with connections to 17 subway lines, 51 bus routes, and the Long Island Rail Road. The project is projected to serve 160,000 daily riders, more than any light rail system currently operating in the United States, and shorten travel times for more than 900,000 residents and 260,000 workers near the corridor.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Wednesday that the MTA plans to release the Draft Environmental Impact Statement ahead of schedule in the fourth quarter of 2026.
Rendering of Interborough Express, via New York State.
Alongside the environmental statement, the MTA detailed accessibility work at the final four non-accessible subway stations that will connect to the line. Upgrades at Broadway Junction, serving the A, C, J, Z, and L trains, are slated for completion by the end of 2027; work at Junius Street on the 3 train, which includes a new connection to Livonia Avenue on the L, is expected to finish by the end of 2026; and improvements at Avenue I on the F train are anticipated by early 2028. Accessibility at a fourth station, Wilson Avenue on the L, has been expedited within the 2025-2029 Capital Plan, with a contract for the work to be awarded by mid-2027.
Rendering of Interborough Express, via New York State.
All 18 new stations will be built to universal design standards, with clear sightlines, tactile floor tiles leading to wide fare gates, pass-through elevators with wider cabs, level boarding throughout the platforms, enhanced lighting, digital signage, and audio announcements. New renderings released with the announcement depict the future New Utrecht Avenue station in Borough Park, and the MTA has launched an updated project website.
The two-year design and engineering phase, launched in August 2025 and led by a joint venture of Jacobs and HDR under a $166 million contract, is the final major step before construction can begin. In essence, the DEIS release is the last significant regulatory hurdle between design and groundbreaking. Funding committed to date includes $2.75 billion from the MTA’s 2025-2029 Capital Plan and $45 million secured in the state’s FY 2026 budget.
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