The proposed QNS Transit Line would provide New York with multiple improvements, including economic growth, new jobs, affordable housing, and revitalized neighborhoods.
KPF Director Elie Gamburg recently joined the Friends of the QNS Board, a community effort to reactivate the Lower Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road for New York City transit use.
In an attempt to provide transit accessibility to Queens residents, KPF partnered with the Queens Chamber of Commerce and former councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley on a proposal to repurpose the Lower Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road into a functional transit line, referred to as the “QNS”. The new line presents an opportunity to extend the New York City public transportation system into underserved neighborhoods, and would increase Queens service area by 13 percent. As a result, the introduction of the QNS would allow for economic and residential growth, making way for about 72,000 new apartments and creating new work opportunities for the area’s middle and working class. Crowley’s proposal includes nine stops to the line, extending from Jamaica to Long Island City, and is expected to serve approximately 21,000 passengers a week.
Additional members of the board include:
- Elizabeth Crowley, former NYC Council Member, Glendale resident, and Board Chair
- Ben Guttmann, Digital Natives Group LIC Business Owner and Resident
- Denise Richardson, General Contractors Trade Association
- Denise Keehan-Smith, Queens Community Board 1 Chairperson, Woodside Resident, and Board Secretary
- Domenic Valdner, Laborers Local 731 ILIUNA and Board Treasurer
- Rhonda Binda, Venture Smarter; Jamaica resident
- Tom Mituzas, MCR, Blissville Resident, Queens Community Board 2
- Walter Sanchez, Publisher Queens Ledger, Queens Community Board 5
- Philippa Karteron, Galleria Noire, St. Albans resident
- John Rapaport, Component Assembly Systems
For more information about the Friends of the QNS, click here.