Posted 10/15/2014 By Kevin
Photo Source: Wikipedia.org
Queens is facing a transportation crisis and dilemma. We have a NYC with a well built transportation network however, when we look at the maps, the main rail corridors are in the Bronx, Manhattan and Brooklyn. The focus is always to build more reliever routes in Manhattan, still it fails to address Queens. Most planned lines and extension concepts address only the Bronx and Brooklyn.
You do have Queens with an okay set of subway network but, it just cannot handle 21st Century loads. The (E), (F), (M) and (R) may seem like 4 lines but, it is very much 1 line that splits into 4 as it approaches Manhattan, the (A), (J) and (Z) may seem like reliever routes for SouthEastern Queens, it just doesn't help much because of the lengthy commute time. It turns away a lot of people who can't deal with such lengths. The (7) does have a LIRR Parallel, but both see heavy ridership and frequently exceed capacity, especially during events in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. You have the (N) but it just doesn't address 90+% of Queens, rather only relieve the (7) when it really passed the majority of it's route. Then you look at the roads... Northern Blvd. (NY-25A), Queens Blvd. (NY-25), the Interstate Highway System (I-295/I-495/I-278/I-678) and the Parkway system pretty much have a load of commuters traveling to and from Long Island and it doesn't help when you have intraborough, interborough and intercounty commuters all around... On top of the local traffic, you have people traveling to and from two of the most major regional airports, one being a huge international player, John F. Kennedy International (JFK) Airport... The minor one being LaGuardia (LGA) Airport...
When you add population growth and other factors into it, you are facing an impending chronic transportation crisis in the County (borough) of Queens... Our borough like many other major cities around the Northeast need additional public transportation routes. Some may say add bike lanes, or bike paths and walkways (Queensway) but, when you think about it, no one will use these as the main way to access Manhattan, and those who will use it is only a handful... Now, you may think, what is the best way to reduce the effects of this impending chronic transportation crisis? We need to identify some major corridors.
Fortunately, one of them has an open space, not taken just yet! That one is the Woodhaven Blvd. Corridor! Then you may question, where is this said open space? If you look at Google Maps, you see a green tree filled line running roughly parallel to Woodhaven Blvd. You might even have saw it when you are in the area! It is that mysterious bridge and small hill with a wall of trees on it! The history of that corridor on the small hill is the Long Island Railroad used to have a line that runs to the Rockaways using that specific line, (read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockaway_Beach_Branch ) it got abandoned in 1962, read more into it in the linked Wikipedia article if you wish.
The tricky part of this is this particular corridor is facing a dilemma, whether or not to continue letting Woodhaven Blvd. feel the jam by building the Queensway (a Bike/Pedestrian Path) or reduce congestion on the Blvd. by building a rail line. For me, the answer is very clear, the Queensway will not help Queens at all, that is only a liability and waste of money, it could even damage or destroy existing bird, possum and raccoon residencies by unnecessary human activities. On top of that, the Queensway would require police patrols overnight to maintain there are no backyard peepers/tresspassers that may harm nearby residences. The railline prevents or reduces both, normally birds, possums and raccoons will not be effected by raillines too much, especially when I look at places like in New Jersey and Long Island. So basically, I say, build the future LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch, this time renaming it to the LIRR JFK Line!
Now, you may question me, why not a Bus Rapid Transit? Why not a Light Rail Line? Why not the Subway? Why not do a BRT or LRT on Woodhaven Blvd.? It is a matter of Right of Way and a matter of If it could be done. I myself know there are opposition in the Forest Hills and Rego Park area. The addition requirement today to build a tunnel portal and tunnel in the Forest Hills/Rego Park Area is going to probably stall this more, it is only going to give momentum to the Queensway support. The LIRR answers it because the only requirement is the necessary clearing of trees and building the infrastructure required to run a commuter railroad, including a simple, not-to-complex junction around the Rego Park area. You might not even notice it being built using this method, a fairly quiet community-friendly method.
For the Stops, I suggest one around Metropolitan Ave. (with elevated parallel walk paths to Union Turnpike and Yellowstone Blvd.), another one at Jamaica Ave. (connections to the (J)/(Z) and elevated walk paths to Park Lane South), another one at Atlantic Ave., another one at Liberty Ave./Rockaway Blvd. (connections to the (A) Ozone Park), and then one more at Aqueduct Racetrack/Casino, and the last stop being at JFK Airport-Howard Beach.
For the Fare Structure, I suggest a hybrid SIRTOA Tompkinsville/St. George-like Fare Gate Structure along with free transfers to the Subway with a LIRR Zone 1 Off-Peak Fare Cost or LIRR CityTicket Fare Cost. There will also be timed transfers at Howard Beach-JFK so people don't have to worry about the cold or heat, or have to wait for long. The transfers has to be seamless for the not disabled and disabled. It Just Works!
This proposal has to happen, it is in no way going to solve the entire Borough of Queens's Transport Dilemma, it will solve a part of it, and a major part of it. An area that needs better and faster transportation into Manhattan. That is SouthEastern Queens...
Yes, let's do it.
ReplyDeleteNope! I would rather this be the (H) line which is to run from Rockaway Park to World Trade Center via 8th Avenue line (this will reduce service on the (E) and (F) for capacity reasons). The (A) does a good job as an Express, however that is the Lower Manhattan approach while Midtown bound customers do not want to ride via Brooklyn when the (H) can accomplish this by connecting with the Queens Blvd line.
ReplyDeleteAlso, this will eliminate the Rockaway Park (S) and run at headways of 10 minutes throughout the day (including Rush Hours) and 20 minutes during Late Nights. It will relieve some of the pressure on the Q52 LIMITED and Q53 LIMITED which are receiving SELECT BUS SERVICE treatments (while customers are still bus prone).
I would suggest that a Bronx spur is added to the LIRR via the Van Wyck Expressway to Fordham Plaza connecting with MetroNorth trains. This eliminates the need to travel into Midtown Manhattan for this connection and saves anywhere between 30 and 90 minutes travel time from Eastern Long Island to points North.