The Interborough Express Line, a shortened version of the Triboro RX,
was announced earlier this year. This line is meant to run along the underused Bay Ride
Branch of the Long Island Rail Road, creating a new connection between Brooklyn and Queens.
While many are satisfied with the line and are glad to soon have a new rail line in their home
areas, some feel like more can be done with the line, like extending it into the Bronx.
In this video, we’ll be discussing where it could be extended or branch to, and how that can happen.
Before we get into things, I would like to thank TMC for greatly helping with this video!
Be sure to like the video and subscribe to the channel for more content like this in the future.
Subtitles by AlienThommy
To start off this video, let’s talk about the extension I’ve heard mentioned the most,
IBX to the Bronx. One of the most recent Triboro RX proposals sees the line running to Co-Op City
in the Bronx. After stopping at Jackson Heights, the line would run along the Northeastern Corridor
to the new Co-Op City station, stopping at the proposed Metro-North, Penn Station Access
Stations. This is the plan I see people talk about the most, and I can see why. It gives
the Bronx a direct Rail Link to both Queens and Brooklyn, and would greatly speed up commutes.
Next up, we have a proposal for a branch of the IBX,
sending it to LaGuardia Airport. Now, I’ve only recently heard of this proposal, and it’s a very
interesting one to me. I think it would be cool to have multiple rail connections to LaGuardia,
but then again, the destinations of those going to and coming from LaGuardia is Manhattan,
and there should be more of a focus on constructing a rail link to that borough.
And finally, the third extension I’ve seen talked about a lot,
and one I actually support, involves extending it to Staten Island.
I've always thought about it like this: It’s facing Staten Island and is directly across the harbor,
it would introduce a direct rail link onto the quote-on-quote Mainland, and could possible even
allow for the long-abandoned North Shore Branch of the Staten Island Railway to be reactivated.
Now, while I think all 3 of these are possible, and would greatly benefit a
large number of people, I think we should get another opinion on this…
Hey guys, I’m TMC, you all might know me for my obsession with De-Interlining, but here,
I will make all of you angry- I mean, give my take on an extension of the IBX to Yankee Stadium.
I’ve heard many people suggest that IBX should go to Staten Island or LaGuardia.
Or, most commonly, I’ve heard people suggest bringing up to Co-Op City in the Bronx.
My take is that all of those ideas should be thrown away immediately. First off, a tunnel
to Staten Island should go directly to Manhattan, not served by a Subway, but rather, be part of the
Regional Rail Network. Possibly, it could connect up to the Harlem Line of the Metro North Railroad,
but that’s outside of the scope of this video. Most jobs on the island are located in Manhattan,
so a connection through or only to Brooklyn wouldn’t be much of an improvement in trip time.
A tunnel is also more difficult to build from Brooklyn to Staten Island, with the
soil conditions along the way to Manhattan being more favorable. An LGA Extension would become
quite redundant with an extension of the Astoria Line. Most hotels are located in Manhattan, so
the extra choice doesn’t really do much, and would instead become a tail with little to no ridership.
Another problem is that an LGA extension starves the IBX of transfers which are already difficult,
and are extremely important to the function of the IBX. This is the same problem an extension
to Co-Op City poses too. My proposal, to send it to Yankee Stadium, gives the IBX much more
transfers, as well as a complete crosstown line through the South Bronx along 149th Street,
connecting the first, second, and 3rd busiest stations and complexes in the Bronx,
leading to less congestion, and much more value for the cost of building any of these extensions.
MYSTIC: Well… seems like most attempts to expend the IBX would be futile, but you know what? I do
like the sound of that Yankee Stadium connection. Not only would the Bronx still get a direct rail
link into Brooklyn in Queens, but it will also be more accessible for those living in the borough.
Instead of only paralelling the (5) and (6) Lines with it going to Co-Op City,
it would connect with every subway line that runs through the borough, increasing connectivity.
Maybe for a rail link to Staten Island, I’ll make a separate video,
talking about the possibilities of extending the Metro-North to St. George,
and I’ll definitely be making a video on extending both the (N) and (W) to LaGuardia Airport.
Anyways though, that’s all for this video. If you enjoyed it and would like to see more
of this type of collaboration content in the future, subscribe to both me and TMC.
His channel will be linked down in the description. Also, consider supporting
the channel with channel memberships, or super thanks. Until next time. Peace.
Subtitles by AlienThommy :)