EAST HARLEM — Another $500 million has been earmarked for the Second Avenue Subway project in East Harlem, according to Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials.
The MTA revised its capital budget for 2016-19 during its board meeting on Wednesday, adding $500 million in federal funding to the second phase of the Second Avenue Subway, according to an MTA spokesman.
The boost in funds will come from the Federal Transit Administration's "New Starts" program to help kick off major capital projects around the country.
The Second Avenue Subway now has roughly $1.035 billion in total that will be used to initiate the second phase of the project, which will stretch from East 96th street to East 125th street.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo had already announced on March 31 that the state would back the project with $1 billion in its new 2016-17 budget, restoring the $1 billion that the MTA cut from its own capital budget for the project last November.
Some El Barrio residents were outraged when they heard about the cut, which had not been publicly discussed before the MTA's vote and was buried in a 237-page proposal, according to the New York Times.
The cuts were made because the MTA cannot begin digging the tunnel until 2019, officials have said.
The MTA has begun advertising Requests for Proposals for the first three contracts of this phase, which include design, environmental and community outreach services, and detailed study and environmental reviews, officials said.
In addition, it will begin acquiring property for stations and moving utility lines to make way for the tunnel.
