Walk into the woods near Forest Park in Queens, and you’ll see it. It’s eerie. Rusted steel girders, tracks swallowed by thick vines, and silent concrete platforms that haven't seen a commuter in over sixty years. This is the LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch, a 3.5-mile stretch of infrastructure that has become one of the most contentious pieces of real estate in New York City. Honestly, it’s a tragedy of urban planning. We have a city desperate for better transit, yet a multi-billion dollar right-of-way is currently serving as a very expensive mosquito habitat.
The history here is messy. It isn't just a "closed train line." It’s a political football. The line originally opened in the late 1800s, connecting the main line in Rego Park down to the Rockaways. It was a powerhouse. At its peak, you could get from midtown Manhattan to the beach in about 40 minutes. Try doing that today on the A train. You can't. Not even close.
The Slow Death of the Rockaway Beach Branch
Things started falling apart in the 1950s. A massive trestle fire across Jamaica Bay in 1950 basically severed the connection. The Long Island Rail Road, which was hemorrhaging money at the time, decided they didn't want the headache of fixing it. They sold the southern portion to the city, which eventually became the IND Rockaway Line (the A train we know today). But the northern section? The piece from Rego Park to Ozone Park? That just... stopped.
Service officially ended in 1962. Since then, it’s been a ghost. If you look at the tracks near Fleet Street, you can still see where the rails just vanish into the dirt. It’s wild because the bridges are still there. The embankments are still there. If this were any other world-class city, like Tokyo or London, they would have revitalized this decades ago. But in NYC, we’ve spent sixty years arguing about whether it should be a park or a train.
Why the QueensLink Proposal is Dominating the Conversation
You’ve probably heard of the High Line in Manhattan. It was a runaway success for property values, but a lot of Queens residents look at it and see a tourist trap they don't need. This gave birth to two competing visions: QueensRail (the transit group) and Queensway (the park group).
Lately, a compromise called QueensLink has been the smartest voice in the room. Basically, they're saying: "Why choose?" Their plan involves putting the train back on the tracks—specifically as an extension of the M or G line—while building a park alongside it. It’s a "rails and trails" approach.
👉 See also: US States I Have Been To: Why Your Travel Map Is Probably Lying To You
The logic is hard to argue with. The census data shows that residents in "transit deserts" like Woodhaven and Ozone Park have some of the longest commutes in the entire country. We’re talking 60 to 90 minutes one way just to get into Manhattan. Reactivating the LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch could cut that commute in half. Literally. Imagine taking a 20-minute train from Ozone Park to Midtown. That changes lives. It changes property values. It changes the local economy.
The "Queensway" and the Pushback
On the flip side, you have the Friends of the Queensway. They want a 47-acre linear park. They argue that the infrastructure is too degraded for trains and that the noise would ruin the quiet residential blocks in Forest Hills and Rego Park. They’ve actually secured some funding recently—about $35 million in federal grants and city money—to start the "Metropolitan Hub" phase near Forest Park.
But here’s the rub. Most transit experts, including those at the MTA who conducted the 2019 "Rockaway Beach Branch Activation Study," admit that while a park is nice, it doesn't solve the "how do I get to work" problem. The MTA's study was controversial, though. They estimated the cost of rail reactivation at nearly $6.7 billion.
$6.7 billion for 3.5 miles.
Transit advocates like Rick Horan and the folks at QueensLink called foul on those numbers. They argue the MTA padded the costs with "gold-plated" extras to make the project look impossible so they wouldn't have to deal with it. They point out that the right-of-way is already owned by the city. There’s no land to buy. No houses to knock down. It’s a "shovel-ready" project in the most literal sense.
✨ Don't miss: UNESCO World Heritage Places: What Most People Get Wrong About These Landmarks
Environmental and Structural Realities
If you go out there today with a pair of boots, you’ll see the challenges. The overpasses over Myrtle Avenue and Union Turnpike are aging. The concrete is spalling. In some spots, the steel is so rusted it looks like lace.
Any reactivation of the LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch would require a total rebuild. We aren't just talking about laying new tracks. We’re talking about:
- Completely new signaling systems.
- Power substations for the third rail.
- Full structural remediation of the bridges.
- ADA-compliant stations with elevators.
It's a big job. But compare that to the Second Avenue Subway, which cost roughly $2.5 billion per mile. Suddenly, the Rockaway Beach Branch looks like a bargain.
The "Not In My Backyard" (NIMBY) Factor
Let’s be real for a second. A huge reason this hasn't happened is political pressure from homeowners along the line. If you live in a house in Forest Hills and your backyard has been a silent, wooded forest for sixty years, you’re going to fight a subway train screaming past your bedroom window every eight minutes.
These residents have a lot of sway. They prefer the park. A park is quiet. A park raises their property value without adding "undesirables" (their words, often whispered in community board meetings) to the neighborhood. This tension between local comfort and regional necessity is exactly why the project has stayed in limbo since the Johnson administration.
🔗 Read more: Tipos de cangrejos de mar: Lo que nadie te cuenta sobre estos bichos
What Actually Happens Next?
Right now, the city is moving forward with the park. The first phase of the Queensway is essentially a go. However, transit advocates haven't given up. They are pushing for the park design to be "transit-compatible." This means making sure that whatever trees or paths are put down, they don't block the future ability to lay tracks.
It’s a tightrope walk. If the city builds a park that occupies the entire width of the right-of-way, they effectively kill the chance for a train forever. Given New York’s climate goals and the push to get cars off the Woodhaven Boulevard corridor—which is a nightmare of traffic and bus lanes—killing a rail line seems shortsighted.
Actionable Insights for New Yorkers
If you care about the future of the LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch, you can't just wait for the MTA to act. They won't unless they're forced to.
- Check the Maps: Look at the QueensLink and Queensway maps side-by-side. Understand where the "bottlenecks" are, specifically the narrow points in Forest Park where "rails and trails" might struggle to coexist.
- Attend Community Board 6 and 9 Meetings: This is where the real war is happening. These boards cover Forest Hills, Rego Park, and Woodhaven. They have massive influence over the Mayor’s office.
- Contact the Department of City Planning: They are currently reviewing the "Queensway" designs. Ask specifically about transit-compatibility easements.
- Visit the Site: Don't trespass—it's illegal and dangerous—but you can see significant portions of the line from the LIRR platforms at Forest Hills or by walking along the public streets in Ozone Park near 99th Street. Seeing the scale of it in person makes the "just make it a park" or "just make it a train" arguments feel much more real.
The LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch is more than just a relic. It is a test of whether New York City can still build big things for the people who need them most, or if we’re just going to keep building boutiques and parks for the people who already have everything. The tracks are there. The route is clear. The only thing missing is the political spine to make it move again.
Keep an eye on the 2026 city budget allocations. If the funding for "The Queensway Phase 2" doesn't include transit provisions, you’ll know exactly which way the wind is blowing.
Key Takeaways for Commuters
- The Travel Time Factor: Reactivation could reduce travel time from Southern Queens to Manhattan by 30+ minutes.
- The Cost Conflict: The MTA estimates $6.7 billion; independent advocates claim it can be done for significantly less by utilizing existing infrastructure more efficiently.
- The Status Quo: Currently, the city is favoring the "Queensway" park model, but the fight for "QueensLink" (the rail+park hybrid) is gaining traction among younger voters and transit-starved residents.
- The Structural State: While "abandoned," the right-of-way remains intact, meaning no eminent domain or property seizures would be required for reactivation.
The fate of the LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch will define Queens transit for the next century. Whether it becomes a world-class transit corridor or just a very long garden depends entirely on the pressure put on City Hall in the next 24 months. Look into the current Environmental Impact Statements being drafted for the Queensway; that's where the fine print lives.