A rendering of QueensWay, a project set to transform an abandoned Long Island Rail Road track in central Queens into a park and greenway.
Trust for Public Land
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and members of the Queens Congressional delegation announced a $117 million federal grant for the QueensWay project’s Forest Park Pass section, which includes 9 acres stretching from Union Turnpike through Forest Park to Park Lane South.
The full QueensWay project will be a 3.5-mile, 47-acre linear park that transforms a stretch of abandoned railway into green space, as well as a transportation corridor featuring pedestrian and bike-friendly paths that connect six neighborhoods from Forest Hills to Ozone Park. The project will provide safe alternative routes to twelve schools, seven subway lines, and one commuter line (LIRR), along with local businesses.
“For many of the 2.3 million people who live in Queens, access to public parks and open space is limited, and in many cases, difficult and dangerous to access by bike or on foot,” Schmer said Tuesday. “That’s why I’m proud to deliver the massive infusion of federal funds, via the Inflation Reduction Act I led to passage, that will advance the Forest Park portion of the ‘QueensWay’– an exciting new urban trail along an abandoned track bed that will connect a range of neighborhoods, create a linear park and provide new cleaner, healthier transportation options, like biking, jogging and walking paths.”
He added that QueensWay will provide much-needed green space and a new transportation corridor within walking distance of hundreds of thousands of residents and countless small businesses in Central Queens from Forest Hills to Ozone Park.
“Investing in the heart of our communities is essential for growth and the success of Queens,” Congressman Gregory Meeks said. “With the assistance of this federal grant, we’re connecting neighborhoods and providing historically disadvantaged…
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