Phase Two of $1.7 Billion Hunts Point Access Improvement Project and Shared-Use Path To Be Completed Ahead of Schedule and Under Budget
Enhancements to Bruckner Expressway and Bruckner Boulevard Improve Access to Hunts Point Food Distribution Center and Reduce Congestion
$10 Million Commitment for Zero-Emission School Buses, All-Electric Mobility Options, and EV Charging Stations to Improve Air Quality in Underserved Communities
Unprecedented State Investment in the South Bronx to Support New York State’s Transition to Zero-Emissions Vehicle Infrastructure
Supports Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act Goal to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 85 Percent by 2050
Governor Kathy Hochul today advanced clean transportation and access improvements in the Bronx including a major milestone in the State's transformative, $1.7 billion Hunts Point Access Improvement Project. Phase Two of the project, which rehabilitated key sections of the Bruckner Expressway and Bruckner Boulevard to create a more direct route to the Hunts Point Market, will be completed ahead of schedule and under budget. Governor Hochul also announced a $10 million commitment for clean transportation initiatives in the Bronx. The investments in zero-emission school buses, all-electric mobility options, and electric vehicle charging stations will improve air quality and reduce pollution in an underserved congested area of New York City, which includes disadvantaged communities, historically overburdened by environmental pollution. Today’s announcement supports the State's Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 85 percent by 2050 and the State’s transition to zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure with all new passenger cars, school buses, and trucks sold to be zero-emissions by 2035.
“Our transformative investments in the Bronx are changing the lives of New Yorkers for the better by reducing air pollution, excessive noise, truck traffic, and clogged roadways,” Governor Hochul said. "We’re creating easier and more direct access to Hunts Point while simultaneously investing in our clean transportation future. These combined efforts will enhance the safety and public health of the community and further the tremendous momentum for growth we are seeing in the South Bronx.”
The Bruckner Expressway and Bruckner Boulevard improvements will enhance safety, improve resiliency, and advance New York’s climate goals by easing congestion and reducing truck traffic on local streets. The second phase also added a new shared-use path along Bruckner Boulevard between 138th Street and Barretto Street, to increase recreational opportunities for cyclists and pedestrians. This announcement is part of an unprecedented state investment to enhance infrastructure in the South Bronx and supports the State's Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act) goals.
Hunts Point Access Improvement Project
Overseen by the New York State Department of Transportation, the Hunts Point project will provide direct access to the Hunts Point Terminal Market from both the Bruckner Expressway and the new Sheridan Boulevard. The Hunts Point Terminal Market and other produce companies near the facility are a vital economic engine for the Bronx, generating more than $2 billion in annual economic activity. More than 78,000 vehicles travel to the Hunts Point Peninsula daily, including 13,000 trucks using local roads, which has contributed to poor air quality in the community.
Phase Two of the project began in the spring of 2021 and was originally scheduled to be complete in the fall of this year. This phase, which has cost less than the original $518 million contract award, rehabilitated 1.25 miles of the Bruckner Expressway between 141st Street and Barretto Street, widening the roadway and providing new entrance and exit ramps that connect westbound Bruckner Expressway to Leggett Avenue. The ramps provide a direct route between the highway network and the Hunts Point Peninsula, including the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center, reducing truck traffic on local streets.
Additionally, a 1.75-mile section of Bruckner Boulevard between Cypress Ave and Barretto Street was reconstructed, and 15 local intersections upgraded. Improvements include new or upgraded curbs, medians, sidewalks, crosswalks, and traffic signals. A new, 1.5-mile shared-use path provides a connection to the 138th Street bike path heading to Randall's Island, Manhattan, and Bronx River Greenway. Three New York City Park islands were also be improved, with trees planted and a new decorative steel fence added along Bruckner Boulevard.
Today’s announcement builds on Governor Hochul’s announcement last October that Phase One of the project was completed on time and under budget. Phase One provided new and improved access to Edgewater Road in the form of three new ramps: a two-way ramp to Edgewater Road from Sheridan Boulevard and a ramp from eastbound Bruckner Expressway to Edgewater Road. Edgewater Road was also resurfaced, and new traffic signals were installed at Seneca Avenue and Garrison Avenue.
Garrison Park was transformed with a new shared-use path, landscaping, viewing platforms overlooking the river and a formal entrance area with a signalized rail crossing and traffic signal, giving residents safer and more seamless access to the Bronx River. Additionally, a new shared-use path was constructed under the Bruckner Expressway to link the new Garrison Park with the existing Concrete Plant Park, with five security cameras installed along the new path to enhance safety for pedestrians and bicyclists while connecting to the Bronx River Greenway.
The Bronx River Avenue viaduct was also rehabilitated, and more than 15,000 square feet of community "Bronx River Open Space" was created under the viaduct. The project also replaced the eastern span of the Bryant Avenue pedestrian bridge over Amtrak/CSX rail lines. In addition, Phase One replaced four bridges that carry the Bruckner Expressway and Bruckner Boulevard over Amtrak/CSX rail lines.
The third and final phase, which is ongoing, will remove a notorious bottleneck by reconstructing the Bruckner Expressway/Sheridan Boulevard interchange and relocating the entrance ramp to northbound Sheridan Boulevard from the left side of the highway to the right side. The addition of a third lane in each direction of the Bruckner Expressway and the replacement of the Bryant Ave Pedestrian Bridge, both of which were started in earlier phases of the project, will also be completed. Additionally, the intersection of Hunts Point Avenue and Bruckner Boulevard will be reconstructed to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety. New signing and pavement markings will also be installed to better direct auto, truck and pedestrian traffic within the Hunts Point Peninsula.
Additionally, a new 117-spot parking lot with 24 electric vehicle charging stations, including four rapid charge spots to better accommodate electric vehicles, will be constructed under the Bruckner Expressway and help enhance air quality in the South Bronx. The project is on schedule to be completed in the fall of 2025.
$10 Million Commitment for Clean Transportation
Programs to fulfill today’s $10 million announcement will be implemented under current and future funding opportunities available later this year through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the New York Power Authority (NYPA), and the New York State Department of Public Service (DPS).
NYSERDA will allocate $3 million from Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) auction proceeds and the State's 10-year, $6 billion Clean Energy Fund to help implement all-electric mobility options that connect residents to transit by investing in innovative, community-identified solutions and demonstration projects. The programs will build on previous innovative transportation initiatives to build electrification and mobility options, such as the New York Clean Transportation Prizes funded through the Public Service Commission (PSC). The additional clean transportation funding opportunities for the Bronx and disadvantaged communities throughout New York State will be available through the Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, which includes $500 million to help school districts transition to zero-emission buses.
NYPA will dedicate $2 million under its EVolveNY initiative, a high-speed, open-access charging network that has installed fast chargers in key locations along primary travel corridors and in urban areas to make it easier for more New Yorkers to drive EVs.
DPS anticipates $1 million in EV Make-Ready incentives could be leveraged to support a total of 1,400 kW of fast charging at two locations.
Building upon the clean transportation funding commitments, the state also announced the adoption of final regulations requiring all new passenger cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs sold in New York State to be zero emissions by 2035. The Advanced Clean Cars II rulemaking supports New York's ambitious efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent by 2050 from 1990 levels, as outlined in the Climate Act. The regulation requires an increasing percentage of new light-duty vehicle sales to be zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) each year, starting with 35 percent ZEV sales in model year 2026, leading to 100 percent ZEV sales by 2035. The rules also include revised pollutant standards for model year 2026 through model year 2034 passenger cars, light-duty trucks, and medium-duty vehicles with internal combustion engines. In addition, Advanced Clean Cars II provides manufacturers with flexibility to meet the emission requirements and help advance a successful transition to cleaner vehicles.
New York was one of the first states to adopt Advanced Clean Cars II in 2022. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) implemented the rule through an emergency rulemaking while the regulations were available for public review and comment. DEC received more than 4,400 public comments and held a virtual public comment hearing in March. The final regulations for these requirements and the Heavy-Duty Low Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) Omnibus and Phase 2 Greenhouse Gas standards will appear in the New York State register on Wednesday, Aug. 23.
New York State's $1 billion investment in electrifying its transportation sector is vital to meet the State's sweeping climate and clean energy plan. Reducing carbon emissions and pollution from vehicles creates cleaner air and healthier communities, particularly in underserved areas. A range of initiatives grow access to electric vehicles and improve clean transit for all New Yorkers including EV Make Ready, EVolve NY, the Drive Clean Rebate, the New York Truck Voucher Incentive Program (NYTVIP), and federal funding under the NEVI Program.
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