The City Council is seeking to expand its role in private development with a new task force to assess new projects’ impacts on city infrastructure.

The infrastructure task force, headed by Council Members Daniel Garodnick and Letitia James, would report to the council on the projected effects, in areas such as traffic, telecommunications, and energy, of large-scale plans conducted by private developers, as well as the state and federal government. The task force could examine the redevelopment of ground zero, the Atlantic Yards project, the Second Avenue subway line, and the future development of the West Side rail yards. “There is no entity today that considers the impact on city infrastructure,” Mr. Garodnick said in a phone interview. “We want to take a long view and see that our infrastructure keeps pace with our development plan.”

Mr. Garodnick said he took a greater interest in the issue after the recent bridge collapse in Minnesota, the steam pipe explosion near Grand Central Terminal, and the Queens power outages “started raising bigger questions about the state of our infrastructure.”

Just south of the United Nations on First Avenue, in Mr. Garodnick’s district, developer Sheldon Solow is currently planning the largest residential development in Manhattan. Residents there have voiced fears about the strain on the neighborhood’s resources.

Ms. James, who opposed the giant Atlantic Yards project in her district, also cited the Minnesota case yesterday, saying the task force planned to be “proactive” in addressing similar problems. “I am also concerned about whether or not adequate infrastructure is in place for the many large-scale construction projects currently in the works,” she said in a statement.

The council speaker, Christine Quinn, said yesterday in a statement that the task force “will broaden the scope of the Council’s oversight and help to find solutions, so that our infrastructure keeps up with the pace of our City.”

The task force is still in the planning stages but likely will become active soon, Mr. Garodnick said. It is not yet clear how the task force could influence large development plans, aside from providing another layer of oversight.

“What we’re doing now is pulling together experts in the various fields to help construct our agenda and to consider what might be fruitful avenues for review,” Mr. Garodnick said.