BQE Riders Shouldnt Expect Quick Fix

BQE Riders Shouldnt Expect Quick Fix
Queens residents and others expecting a quicker trip on the notoriously congested Brooklyn-Queens Expressway will have at least two years to wait, The Queens Courier has learned. The massive four-year reconstruction of the BQE has only reached the half-way mark, the State Dept. of Transportation (DOT) told The Courier last week.
Running nearly two miles between Broadway and 25 Ave., the "Y" -shaped northern sector of the BQE provides direct access to key traffic arteries in Woodside, Jackson Heights, and Astoria. But, stalled commuters still cant breathe a sigh of relief.
Adding to the complexity of this project, the roadway repairs also require re-alignment of adjacent Conrail tracks, new sewer lines, local utilities, and a sewage pumping stationall being impacted by the highway construction.
An estimated 75,000 cars and trucks per day travel along the key connecting artery that provides traffic links to every major east/west roadway in Queens and Brooklyn, as well as all major bridge and tunnel links to Manhattan and Staten Island.
Flushing resident Teri Panore, reports "excruciating traffic jams" during morning and evening trips to and from her job in Long Island City. "What was a 22-minute trip, has become a 60-minute nightmare. Westbound commuters on the Grand Central Pkwy. have to wait in line to get onto the southbound BQE," she declared. In addition, she said, motorists on the BQE, in the vicinity of Northern Blvd., are funneled onto rising and dipping lanes to permit workers to lower street levels below the Expressway.
Since last March, Panore, a medical salesperson, has taken the #7 train to the Queens Plaza station, and walks five blocks to her office. She now parks her car overnight at the office. Asked about train service on the #7, Panore said, "Dont ask!"
State DOT project manager Jack Hanen said that the $227 million project is not just about highway repairs, but also involves:
Installation of nearly four miles of retaining and noise walls.
Over three miles of drainage pipes, 450 drainage structures, and a sewage pumping station.
Rebuilding 19 bridge structures, 5 of which carry trains.
Built in 1952 as a narrow four-lane highway, the project is scheduled to be completed in March 2004.