The guest speakers will be representatives from the Port Authority who plan to discuss the latest version of the Cross Harbor initiative which would allow freight from other states to be brought into Queens by rail and then trucked from freight yards to their destinations throughout the City and Long Island. The original proposal was to place a large intermodal rail-to-truck operation on the former Phelps Dodge site in West Maspeth. The plan has now been altered in an attempt to minimize the impact on surrounding neighborhoods. Communities expected to be adversely affected by the Cross Harbor Project include Maspeth, Middle Village, Glendale, Sunnyside and Hunters Point.
The Cross Harbor initiative, or any part of it, will not only bring more truck traffic into our communities, but it will severely impact the already gridlocked Fresh Pond Terminal that is creating quality of life and environmental impacts for nearby homeowners.
Residents from Maspeth, Middle Village, Glendale, Sunnyside and Long Island City are urged to attend this meeting. Our communities are already overburdened with trucks and suffer the effects of pollution from the Long Island Expressway, Brooklyn Queens Expressway and traffic coming from Long Island. We need a united voice on this issue to ensure the Port Authority hears us and chooses the option that will result in the best outcome for our neighborhoods.