Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Makes a Transportation Announcement

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board has approved the tunnel-boring contract for Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway, the project extending the Q train from 96 Street to 125 Street that will deliver new transit access to East Harlem residents. This new tunnel will extend from 116 Street to 125 Street. Crews under this contract will also excavate space for the future 125 Street Station, and in a cost-containment measure that saves the MTA $500 million, will outfit the tunnel along the route that was built in the 1970s to accommodate the future 116 Street Station.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor's Flickr page will have photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Thank you for also confirming to me that leadership does matter, and you've driven this organization to new heights, and I could not be prouder to partner with you as we take on the transportation challenges of today but also lean hard into tomorrow. So future generations will look back at this time and say, yes the leadership and the MTA board — and I'm grateful for all your support here and all the members who are your team's extraordinary staff. You're going to look back and they're going to look back and say, this was an era of what some are calling abundance, but it's how we've always done things here. We're not afraid of anything, and I want to thank everyone for the audacity which we bring to these projects and all of you. And I know we're joined by Senator Cordell Clear, who's an incredible champion of her community, we spent a lot of time together. I want to thank her for joining us and Assemblymember Jordan Wright and also a newer member but is really making his mark. And I want to appreciate my partners in government. I don't operate alone. We have a lot of work to do together as we head back into the next session in a few months but we'll be there. I'm really proud to be here at a special meeting. It's called a special meeting technically, but it really is a special meeting. Here we're pushing forward another transformational transportation project. And I'll say this one, this is long overdue. I don't know if there's too many people in this room alive when they first started talking about this.

I think it goes back many generations, perhaps 80 years. But also as I think about how long this has been a journey, I also have to think back to someone who really brought this to my attention in a very profound way, which is Congressman Adriano Espaillat. Starting with when he took me underground and we were down there one of my first days as Governor and to see that the work had been started, there was a vision. People thought they were going to move forward with this, and all of a sudden it just stopped. I want to thank him for all his hard work, but it's been about a century, I think, that people were promised a new station here. And nearly 80 years since they tore down the elevated railroad, which this community had relied upon. And as I look back at the history, a lot of Governors came and went, and sometimes the project just seems too big or that perhaps they didn't think that this community was as important as others and did not make those investments. And I'm so proud that era is over, that this is a community that matters, and this is another way we're telegraphing our strong interest in the full Renaissance of Harlem which is extraordinary. So I think this for the people of East Harlem the time of promises is over. We are moving down the tracks as quickly as we possibly can and we're about to approve a $2 billion contract.

Now, I asked what the contract actually is and people said it's a boring contract. I said “Anything related to the Second Avenue subway can't possibly be boring.” And they laugh because I actually knew what a boring contract was, but I was pretending I didn't. It's not boring, it's exciting, it's $2 billion to show that this is a serious commitment. You don't do that without knowing that you're going to go forward. So this century of inaction is finally over. And this has been a top priority of mine because I've spent a lot of time in this community eight years as Lieutenant Governor and as Governor. It's a community that has an abundance of potential, but also there have been barriers to people having access to the better paying jobs elsewhere. And it's such a long commute for individuals – whether it's getting to school or doctor's appointment or a better paying job. And so we wanted to make sure that we could show that we could cut through the bureaucracy and all the red tape and also took significant funding. And I congratulate all of you and my partners in state government for helping deliver this very ambitious capital plan $68.4 billion dollars, which is allowing this to happen. And part of the funding does come from congestion pricing. It's working, we know that, send our friends in Washington a message — It is working, and we know that traffic is down and business is up and people are happy. And I'm really proud that we stuck with that and had to have a break to address the pricing and other issues. But we got to where we needed to go, and I think there's no looking back now. So again this is a project that sends a strong message.

And to save people time — I also look at these projects, Janno, as not just about saving the time for people, but connecting people in communities. And that's why we look at some of the other projects we're championing.

The Interborough Express — we just were down there and everybody's so excited about the possibility. And the world has changed a lot. The outer boroughs were the outer boroughs, but everybody gravitated toward Manhattan, and that's what our transit system did. It didn't acknowledge the fact that someone in Brooklyn may actually work in Queens or have a family member or an event or a gathering with friends. And so we're creating a connection where there has not been one ever.

And this is another one of those projects. These are my favorite projects. The ones that someone proposed a hundred years ago, or this is 30 years ago, and we are the administration that collectively can get it on the move.

And so we're going to continue looking for the tough projects. Give us the harder ones, the ones that others walk away from and say, “It's just too much, too expensive, too ambitious and maybe this community doesn't have enough political clout.” They all have political clout in my mind. These are all of our constituents, and they deserve the very best in transit options possible. I just wanted to tick through a couple of the quick accomplishments before we get to today.

But I just think back, I think it's — what's the date? I think it's four years ago, in a couple of days, I became Governor. It's almost my four-year anniversary of being Governor. They had already started, but delivered the completion of the Long Island Rail Road, the third track. That's been extraordinary as I ride out there often. The one-seat-ride to the East Side from Grand Central Madison, how beautiful is that? That's a huge point of pride and those who've never seen it before are just stunned how magnificent it is.

And the long-stalled Gateway Tunnel. This was an early conversation I had when I was a new Governor working with my partner across the river, New Jersey, and for too long there were just these clashes between governors and presidents and governors again, and it’s like, “Put aside all this — I won't say what I was going to say.” Put it all aside, all the opposition, and just roll up your sleeves and get it done. Like, why don't we just get stuff done? So that's on the way, and that's really exciting – been talked about for a long time.

And the Midtown Bus Terminal, let's move ahead on that. First proposed in 2007. So that's starting.

So what I want to just simply say is, this project hopefully will restore people's faith in our capacity and our desire to get the big transformational projects done. And this is right at the top of the list. And it is complex. And it's going to take some time and some money. But when this is all finished, as the other transformational projects that we all rely on now, those who came before us had the dream, had the vision and had the ability to get it done. We are also in that same category. And this is going to be another hallmark of success not just for our administration, but also for the MTA overall and for the community. This is a big success for the community overall.

So thank you. I was really proud to be able to participate in this, and I know I look forward to hearing your remarks as well, Janno. Thank you.