Pols pushing speedup of BQE’s rehab

ALBANY — A bipartisan group of state legislators from the city is urging Gov. Cuomo to allow the city to use a streamlined bidding process for the planned reconstruction of the BrooklynQueens Expressway.

The 19 senators and Assembly members sent a letter to Cuomo urging him to include, in his upcoming state budget proposal, authorization for the city to use a design-build process that backers say speeds things up and reduces costs by separating the planning and construction phases.

Authorizing a design-build procurement process would allow the city to expedite the BQE rehabilitation process by as much as two years and save taxpayers more than $113 million, the lawmakers said.

“This portion of. . . I-278 is a critical link in the region’s transportation system and a prolonged reconstruction could damage the region’s economy,” the letter says.

A Cuomo rep said “we’ll review the letter” that was pushed by Sen. Brian Kavanagh (D-Manhattan) and Assemblywoman Jo Anne Simon (D-Brooklyn).