By Michelle Kaske | Updated on Oct 08, 2026 at 09:06 PM
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority is starting an environmental review of a proposed crosstown subway line along Harlem’s 125th Street that could serve an estimated 164,000 weekday riders.
The MTA, which runs the city’s subways, buses and commuter railroads, wants to extend subway service west to Broadway along Harlem’s main commercial boulevard, home to the Apollo Theater. The agency is already extending the Second Avenue subway’s Q line from 96th Street on the Upper East Side to 125th Street in East Harlem.
Continuing west while the tunnel-boring machines are in place would accelerate the work by two years and save hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the MTA.
The crosstown subway link — estimated in 2023 to cost $7.5 billion — would expand transit options for the neighborhood’s approximately 253,000 residents and connect to seven subway lines and Metro-North Railroad, which serves the city’s northern suburbs, according to a draft scoping document for the project.
“Given the huge potential to save time and money, it would be irresponsible not to explore options to keep digging westward under 125 St,” Janno Lieber, the MTA’s chief executive officer, said in a statement Thursday. “And we are of course making it a priority to get community input and feedback as we kick off the environmental review process.”
Read More: Hochul Eyes $7.6 Billion NYC Subway Extension Along 125th Street
Many low-income, minority and transit-dependent New Yorkers live in the area, according to the document. The projected weekday ridership includes about 5,500 new transit trips.
The MTA is accepting public comments through Nov. 13 to gather feedback from the community and other stakeholders. The agency expects to complete a draft environmental impact statement in the first quarter of 2027.