Mayor Mamdani’s plan to stabilize BQE Central will use temporary bypass structures that allow NYC DOT to repair deteriorated sections of the highway and improve drainage, railings and lighting while protecting local streets from dangerous through traffic, facilitating the movement of goods and preserving access to historic destinations including the Brooklyn Heights Promenade and Brooklyn Bridge Park.

NYC DOT plans to build a temporary, two-level highway bypass on top of Furman Street, below the promenade, from Atlantic Avenue to Columbia Heights. This bypass will be no higher than the existing Queens-bound highway and will not block the promenade. The agency plans to build a second temporary, elevated highway bypass from Columbia Heights, over the Brooklyn Bridge approach, to the Manhattan Bridge.

NYC DOT will begin the City Environmental Quality Review process this fall for the BQE Central project and host community engagement through informational sessions and the public scoping process. The agency expects to complete an environmental impact statement in the summer of 2028.

“For decades, prior administrations have failed to deliver urgent long-term repairs to BQE Central—but we can no longer afford to wait for the perfect solution,” said Mayor Mamdani. “We’re going to fix the aging concrete, repair the deteriorating triple cantilever and build temporary roads that keep the highway operable during construction to avoid sending tens of thousands of cars and trucks onto local streets. This plan allows us to safely fix the BQE without slowing our city down or wasting decades more on magical thinking. The cost of inaction is too high, and the risks to New Yorkers are too important to delay any longer.”