How a Youth-Led Group Is Fast-Tracking Subway Fixes

By MOHAMED FARGHALY

mfarghaly@queensledger.com

A youth-led transit advocacy group that started as a high school club is making waves in New York City transit circles, building support for a major subway service change while keeping a slate of other improvement campaigns in motion.

The Joint Transit Association (JTA) — formerly the Tech Transit Association — is made up of students and alumni from New York City public schools. The group was officially formed in 2023, when transit clubs at Brooklyn Technical High School and Stuyvesant High School joined forces to create a citywide organization.

Edward Zheng, a member of JTA, traces the origin of his advocacy back to his middle school years, when he first learned about the QueensLink proposal — a plan to convert a disused rail corridor in Queens into a new transit connection.

“I found myself really impressed about how some of a group of people were advocating to build a rail line that’s not too far from where I live,” Zheng said. “Is there any group out there that’s willing to, you know, advocate? Is there any interest in trying to get Queens its, you know, subways, because we don’t have much subways here in Queens?”

That curiosity led Zheng to launch a transit issues club at Brooklyn Tech during the pandemic. “Without much advertisement, we were able to get 30–35 people in a meeting, and I found myself being like, well, wow, I’m not the only weirdo who has an interest in trains,” he said.

When he connected with the Stuyvesant club in 2022, the two groups decided to merge, creating the Joint Transit Association with a broader base of members and a shared focus on advocacy.

One of JTA’s most significant campaigns has been the push for the “F and M Swap,” a service change that would reroute the F and M trains to reduce bottlenecks at Queens Plaza, where multiple subway lines converge.

“Queens Plaza is an absolute mess,” Zheng said. “You have E trains and F trains merging … E and M trains merging … and M and R trains merging … these are absolutely atrocious.”

Zheng said the swap would remove two of the three merges, improving reliability and reducing crowding. The idea gained traction after the MTA temporarily rerouted the F train during a 63rd Street tunnel repair, which demonstrated the benefits.

The group’s advocacy included writing proposals, sending dozens of daily emails to officials, and lobbying elected leaders. Zheng credited JTA members — Jeffrey, Justin, Alexa and Scott — for the behind-the-scenes work that kept the effort alive.

“Knowing that all these benefits are happening in part because we, you know, we just constantly talked about this, first to different politicians, then to the public — you know, it works, and that’s like one of the most rewarding parts,” Zheng said.

In June 2024, the MTA confirmed its intent to move forward with the F/M Swap, aiming for implementation in December 2025 pending board approval.

While the swap has been their flagship issue, JTA’s advocacy extends to other projects, including the QueensLink, the 7 Train Project, and the Interborough Express. Zheng said the group supports building the IBX on schedule, automating its operations, and using it as a model for future subway automation in New York. They also support boosting housing construction near IBX stations to address the city’s housing shortage while guarding against displacement.

The group is currently developing a proposal to increase F train frequency during off-peak hours and add more F express service in South Brooklyn. They are also researching ways to restore subway service frequencies cut during the 2010 budget crisis.

“The most rewarding part is showing that politics matters. You know, our voice, it matters,” Zheng said. “That makes it definitely worth it.”

For Zheng, the fight is personal. He remembers waiting at Roosevelt Avenue for an E train to Court Square while several F trains passed by, wishing the swap had been in place.

Edward runs JTA’s YouTube channel and is the group’s primary video producer, handling most of the content himself after asking other members to help and finding few volunteers. The channel serves as JTA’s main outreach tool — publishing explainer videos, launching campaigns such as the F/M Swap, gauging public response, and helping drive petitions, rallies and canvassing efforts. Edward leans on other members  for proposal writing, emailing and event work; he also says that after he posts a video he often signs off, but finds seeing audience reactions and support rewarding.

The JTA engages with students, alumni, and the public through its YouTube channel, petitions, rallies, and canvassing at transit-related events. They also collaborate with politicians and community leaders to refine proposals and build political support.

Zheng emphasizes that while he produces much of the group’s video content, the JTA is a team effort. “JTA itself can’t, you know, be functional without other people who constantly help me advocate and write emails and plan events,” he said.

Readers interested in getting involved can email TTA@jointtransit.org.

Courtesy REBNY

MOHAMED FARGHALY

mfarghaly@queensledger.com

New York City is falling well short of its ambitious goal to add 500,000 new housing units by 2034, according to a new report from the Real Estate Board of New York that warns current policies and incentives are not producing homes fast enough to address the city’s deepening housing crisis.

The report, REBNY’s New Housing Development Pipeline, analyzes permit and construction data from the city Department of Buildings from the first quarter of 2024 through the third quarter of 2025. It also offers an early assessment of major housing initiatives, including City of Yes, the 485-x tax incentive and the 467-m program, which encourages office-to-residential conversions.

Since the start of 2024, just 66,162 housing units have been completed citywide, about 13 percent of the decade-long target. To stay on track, the city would have needed to produce an average of 12,500 units per quarter starting in 2024. Instead, construction has averaged about 9,452 units per quarter.

As a result, the pace of building required for the remainder of the decade has risen sharply. REBNY estimates that the city would now need to complete roughly 13,147 units per quarter through 2034, an increase of nearly 39 percent from the current rate, to meet the goal.

That shortfall has created what the report describes as a 433,838-unit housing gap, a challenge made more daunting by slow-moving development timelines. Projects with 10 or more units now take at least four years to complete, reflecting rising costs, regulatory hurdles and financing challenges.

“The current tools for housing production are not adequate to meet the needs of New York City, and without the creation of significant new incentive programs and comprehensive rezonings there is no way we will meet our goal to build 500,000 new homes by 2034,” said James Whelan, President of the Real Estate Board of New York. “This city needs a much more aggressive set of proposals to drive new housing production, lower costs and deliver a New York City that works for everyone. Our industry is ready to work with our leaders in City Hall and Albany to do just that.”

The report also examines the Affordable Neighborhoods for New Yorkers Tax Incentive program, known as 485-x, which replaced the long-running 421-a program in 2024. REBNY found that 485-x accounts for just 3 percent of all housing units currently in pre-development or under construction across the five boroughs, raising questions about whether the program is strong enough to spur large-scale development.

Further concerns emerge in the pre-development pipeline. While 47,124 units are technically in pre-development, about a third of them, or 14,419 units, were pre-filed more than five years ago and are considered unlikely to move forward. The number of projects stuck in pre-development for more than five years has grown by more than 7 percent on average each quarter since early 2024, representing thousands of units that may never be built.

At the same time, REBNY credits recent policy wins with preventing an even steeper decline in housing production. The report estimates that there would be at least 38 percent fewer units in the pipeline had the real estate industry not successfully advocated for a deadline extension of the 421-a program and for the creation of 467-m, which allows commercial buildings to be converted into housing with permanently affordable units.

Brooklyn leads the city in active construction, with 29,361 units under construction as of the end of the third quarter of 2025, accounting for 39 percent of all units being built. Manhattan follows with 15,767 units, or 21 percent, while Queens has 14,883 units, the Bronx 13,664 and Staten Island 1,122.

A similar pattern appears in completed housing since the start of 2024. Brooklyn again ranks first with 26,563 units completed, about 40 percent of the citywide total. Queens follows with 16,767 units, the Bronx with 13,456, Manhattan with 8,039 and Staten Island with 1,229.

The report situates these findings against the backdrop of an acute housing shortage, marked by a citywide rental vacancy rate of 1.41 percent, the lowest since 1968, and a record number of families living in shelters. While state and city leaders have enacted tax incentives and zoning changes aimed at boosting housing supply, REBNY argues that far more aggressive action will be needed if New York City hopes to close the gap and ease pressure on renters in the years ahead.

MOHAMED FARGHALY

mfarghaly@queensledger.com

Holiday dinners hosted at two Queens public schools this month offered families facing housing instability a rare chance to slow down, share a meal and spend time together in a welcoming setting.

The events were organized by Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens in partnership with the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation as part of the nonprofit’s ongoing Adopt-a-Family holiday initiative. Dinners were held Dec. 18 at P.S. 16Q, The Nancy DeBenedittis School, and Dec. 22 at P.S. 92Q, The Harry T. Stewart, Sr. School, both in Corona. New York State Assemblymember Catalina Cruz, who represents the 39th Assembly District, attended in support.

“It was truly meaningful to see P.S. 16 transformed into a home, a place of warmth, joy, and connection. For many families navigating housing instability and economic uncertainty, the holidays can be especially difficult. Events like this offer more than a meal. They provide dignity, comfort, and a sense of belonging,” Cruz said. “I’m deeply thankful to Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens and the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation for appreciating all families, honoring the cultural diversity of our community, and reminding our neighbors that they are supported not just during the holidays, but year-round. This is the power of partnership and what it looks like when we show up for one another in Queens.”

School cafeterias were decorated with holiday lights, music and activity tables for children, who posed for photos with Santa, played games and showed off art projects. Donations included stuffed animals from the Bronx Zoo, toys from the 110 Precinct Youth Explorers and Elmhurst Hospital, and household items from the nonprofit God’s Blessings Plan. Parents and caregivers were able to spend uninterrupted time together as children played nearby.

Each dinner welcomed about 100 guests, many living in temporary housing or homes without reliable cooking facilities. Families were served a sit-down holiday meal that included turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables, along with vegetarian options. Organizers said the menu was designed to reflect the cultural diversity of Queens.

“These events are about more than food,” said Yoselin Genao Estrella, executive director of Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens. “NHS of Queens and Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation serve Queens families in different, yet deeply connected, ways: housing and financial stability on one side, healthcare access and wellness on the other. Through our Adopt-a-Family initiative, we bring those missions together to offer families nourishment, relief, and hope at a time when stress and uncertainty are often at their highest. It is a powerful example of what community collaboration can achieve.”

Behind the scenes, NHS of Queens staff worked with school parent coordinators to identify families most in need and to coordinate food, decorations and on-site support. Families also received information about housing assistance, financial counseling and health insurance options during the events.

“We’re all stronger when we stand together with trusted community partners,” said Dr. Mark Levy, president and CEO, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield New York. “By working with a common purpose – to remove barriers to stable housing, nutritious food, and quality healthcare – we’re helping Queens families move from crisis to stability.”

Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens serves more than 12,000 residents annually, with a focus on Community Boards 3 and 4, areas with some of the borough’s highest rates of housing instability and food insecurity. The organization has long partnered with public schools as access points for families in crisis.

Parents and caregivers described the dinners as a welcome break from daily stress, organizers said, as children laughed, played and posed for photos.

“The holiday season should be a time of warmth, joy, and togetherness for every family. In Queens, our public schools become places of comfort and community, and these holiday dinners offered families facing housing instability a chance to gather, share a meal, and celebrate with dignity during a stressful time of year. I’m grateful to Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens and the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation for bringing holiday cheer, meaningful support to our neighbors, and for reminding families that they are seen, valued, and cared for,” said Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, who represents the 34th Assembly District.

On Friday night, some of the finest musicians of the outer borough hip-hop underground descended on Nublu in the East Village. Although not billed as such, the evening was practically a mini-fest proving loud and clear that Brooklyn and Queens are still fostering emcees brimming with lyrical brilliance.

First up was Nappy Nina, an Oakland native who has repped Brooklyn for quite some time. Decked out in denim and an Oakland A’s cap, the rapper spit rhymes while bopping around the stage and gesturing towards the crowd. Her flow is so fast that it was hard to decipher every word but her tracks amped up the audience.

The next act was WRENS, whose show this was. Performing songs off their album, Half of What You See (2025, Out of Your Head Records), from November, the Brooklyn quartet blasted a jazz-rap-noise-punk hybrid that that may very well be of its own kind. This is a group, like TV On the Radio about 20 years prior, that steps on a scene and not only mixes genres but stretches them to their limits. The band’s musicianship is so deft, however, that all of their songs emerge fluidly.

WRENS consists of Elias Stemeseder on synths and una corda piano, Lester St. Louis on cello and electronics, and Jason Nazary on drums and synths, but it is frontman, Ryan Easter, who particularly stands out.

Wearing a Rolling Stones cap and a “We Got the Jazz” tee, Easter paced the stage like a rocker even as he coolly played his trumpet and, at times, shouted his verses. “I heard the devil wears Prada,/I got a maggot in the booth,” went one. “Easy to live it,/Loving is wicked,” went another. Delivered in his deep voice, as though rising from a well, his words shot through the low light of Nublu before hitting ears like mini-rockets.

A Richmond, Virginia native who moved to Brooklyn in 2021, the thirty-three-year-old Easter has already established himself in NYC’s jazz scene as both a sideman and a leader. Just the night before the Nublu show, for example, he played in the Anna Webber/Angela Morris Big Band concert at Roulette on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn (along with Out of Your Head founder, Adam Hopkins, on bass).

A few weeks before the Roulette set, he led his Trap Music Orchestra at The Jazz Gallery in the Flatiron District. Before the Nublu show, sitting at the venue’s upstairs lounge, he estimated that he was “in nine groups right now.” Of all his projects, WRENS is an indisputable highlight, in large part due to Easter’s words and vocal delivery.

“Extra extra: Can you even read about it?,” he raps early on Half of What You See, capturing a certain kind of New York where everyone’s rushing for the morning paper and the news hits even before the first sip of coffee. Yet Easter’s creative process is much more intuitive than his almost telegrammatic lyrics might lead one to believe.

“The way WRENS has always made music is not really trying or second-guessing,” he says. “We just play, record, listen back, and things sound coherent, good enough for us, and we kind of leave it for what it is. Sometimes, we chop things up in post and patch them together in different ways. Sometimes, I have things already written without approaching them musically.” Easter goes on to admit, “There’s a lot of word soup in there, but it always makes sense to me.”

During the WRENS set, Easter tossed such verses as, “Every day a martyr,/That is how the show goes,” and, “Puppy to the bone,/’Til he chewing to the marrow.” Towards the end of Half of What You See, Easter spit, “Mary the Moment,/Stalling is Joseph,” and, “Please make my aim,/Give my demons Cheney aim,/David Blaine’d em for the record.”

What does it all mean? What is Easter, really, saying? It doesn’t quite matter, except that his words themselves hit as hard as life does.

Closing act, E L U C I D, a prince of the NYC hip-hop underground, hit just as hard. Playing tracks from across his output, the Queens rapper performed one especially forceful song, “The World Is Dog,” the lyrics of which go, “Fang bite, dog breath,/Short leash, pit fight.”

Yes, the world is “dog,” so, as these artists seem to instruct, check your head, and have a heart.