Why the streetcar is a very good idea
In 2013, I ran against Bill de Blasio for mayor. It’s fair to say we don’t agree on a lot of things, but I felt compelled to speak out about the recent unfair criticism of the city’s proposed streetcar, the BQX, and how de Blasio came to support it.
Daily News coverage has breathlessly tried to connect the city’s decision to advance the BQX to political donations from developers along the route in a way that, for me, doesn’t add up.
Let’s be real. New York’s business leaders have a long tradition of staunchly advocating for New York’s economy, and that’s a good thing. Without the voice and energy of the private sector, many of our most critical infrastructure investments — from Hudson Yards to the Second Ave. subway — would never have come to pass.
The idea that many well known and very civically active companies with a long history of donating to elected officials, philanthropies and New York civic organizations — many of whom also contributed to my campaign in 2013 — suddenly started making political contributions to advance a streetcar just isn’t true.
Instead of chasing allegations and innuendos, let’s judge the BQX on its merits.
Upgrading transit options in neighborhoods underserved by good medical care needs to be a critical city priority. NYU Langone Medical Center, where I am chief of staff, has merged Lutheran Medical Center in Sunset Park into its health-care system. The new NYU Lutheran Medical Center provides a range of worldclass services to extremely vulnerable populations in south Brooklyn, but it can and should do more.
Unfortunately, like many places on the East River, NYU Lutheran is inaccessible by public transportation. The streetcar would provide convenient, reliable and wheelchair-accessible transit options to these residents, connecting them to excellent medical care at NYU Lutheran and the many other providers along the proposed route.
And it’s not just medical facilities that are inaccessible. The waterfront has become a booming job center, from Long Island City to the Navy Yard and Brooklyn Army Terminal. The BQX would make these hubs reachable for tens of thousands of more people, including the more than 40,000 NYCHA residents who live along the corridor and are currently isolated from good transit.
Some people who are afraid of change have called for running more bus service instead. As a former head of the MTA, I can tell you that we’ve tried that. And yes, buses are cheaper to operate, but there’s a reason that bus ridership is declining across the city even as subways fill to overcrowding. They are often plagued by delays and in many cases are simply not reliable, especially on a route so circuitous. New Yorkers just can’t count on them to get to work or school on time.
That’s why I joined three of my predecessor MTA chairs in endorsing the mayor’s plan. Let’s try something new. The BQX’s over 50,000 projected commuters would be able to ride the streetcar in one efficient route without traffic delays that bring buses to a crawl.
To me, that makes it a pretty good project.
Yet some are now arguing against it because the business community is behind it and would benefit from it as well. That’s a self-defeating argument. If we followed that line of thinking, for instance, we would never have extended the 7 train to Hudson Yards, which is unlocking enormous benefit to the city’s economy and supporting job growth in a previously fallow part of the city.
The effort to advance the BQX continues New York’s long history of civic involvement in driving public improvement projects. When New York City faced one of the worst crises in its history in the 1970s, Lew Rudin and Bob Tisch rallied hundreds in the business community to double down on New York City and lead it back to prosperity. They created one of today’s leading civic organizations, the Association for a Better New York, to work with the city to tackle hundreds of projects from transit to schools.
These leaders are actively involved in city politics because they care about New York’s continued growth and prosperity — and that’s good for business and good for all New Yorkers. It’s time to look at the merits and give Bill a break on the BQX.