I went to the open house in Ridgewood yesterday and it seems like the community was very supportive of the plan.
I do think its a bit crazy that it will take two years to get the engineering process to 30 percent as they stated in their presentation. I also heard 2035 being the target date for this (which also seems like too much?).
Saw this posted on the /r/nycrail subreddit by u/R42ToMoffat:
Soooooo glad that they are going for a tunneling approach instead of running on the street. It was my biggest gripe with this project and I’m happy they listened to feedback.
Oh thank God. As a frequent user of the Los Angeles Metro, I can attest how even a short street-running segment can effectively hobble an entire light rail line.
Will both of these stations be located underground?
now with congestion pricing the MTA is finally being taken seriously
This is great stuff. I’m hoping now that they modify the Jackson Heights terminus to make it an easier transfer between IBX and subway
Glad that they finally committed to doing the tunnel. It’s such a sigh of relief.
The best thing about a tunnel is that depending on the tunnel loading gauge, they could potentially fit A-Division subway cars (Numbered Routes) through it or even the B-Division (Lettered Routes) depending on the dimensions and the line could be converted to the proper subway if they wanted to go that route in the future.
Street running would have prevented the IBX from ever being converted to a subway and would put trains at the mercy of street traffic.
IBX not connecting to the Bronx is crazy. If there’s one thing to spend a lot of money on, its this. AT THE LEAST, connect it to Laguardia
I love the bridge idea but forget about Manhattan and instead run it into the Bronx (no tunnels). Also, the bridge should be able to support both IBX and freight trains. Moving freight trains off the Hells Gate Bridge to a new bridge creates more room for Amtrak and Metro North.
