A glimpse underneath the elevated tracks in Astoria. Repair work will change service patterns along the N and Q. (Photo by flickr user Marcin Wichary)
For residents of Astoria, the MTA dropped a Friday surprise. For a series of weekends through 2011, rail replacement and structural work on the elevated tracks in Queens will force service changes on the N and Q. Here’s the announcement:
MTA NYC Transit announces two major projects slated for Astoria in 2011 that will affect several weekend and some weekday schedules during off-peak hours. The first project is track panel installation at 36th Avenue. This work is scheduled for the following weekends: February 12-13, 19-20, 26-27, March 5-6, 12-13, August 13-14, 20-21, 27-28, September 3-4, 10-11, 17-18 and 24-25. On these weekends, the Manhattan-bound N train will operate as an express from Astoria Boulevard to Queensboro Plaza bypassing 30th Avenue, Broadway, 36th Avenue and 39th Avenue from 4 a.m. Saturday to 10 p.m. Sunday. The work entails the replacement of thirty-nine-foot sections of elevated track including ties, running rails, third rail and walkways – all part of NYCT’s In-house Capital Construction Program.
Work will also go on during the week on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. from February 2 to March 18. On those weekdays, Manhattan-bound N trains will run express from Astoria Boulevard to Queensboro Plaza and Q trains will terminate at 57th Street-7th Avenue. Manhattan-bound customers should plan for additional travel time as these service changes may add up to 15 minutes to their trip. Customers at the bypassed stations may backride to Astoria Boulevard for Manhattan-bound service or consider taking the R at Steinway or 36th Streets, the F at 21st Street-Queensbridge or walking to Queensboro Plaza.
The second project is structure painting from 40th Avenue to the 60th Street Tunnel portal west of 21st Street which is planned for some weekends in May, June, July and one weekend in October to be announced at a later date. The work will run through the entire weekend from 12:01 a.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Monday.
Finally, during one minor project, on the weekend of March 19-21, there is no N service between Queensboro Plaza and Times Square. Customers must use the 7 line for service into and out of Manhattan. This is due to track maintenance work at 57th Street and in the 60th Street tube.
Of course, politicians are already bemoaning the changes. A few have claimed that recent snow efforts warrant shuttle service when these changes go into effect, and others seem to blame the high fares for the need to perform structural work on aging infrastructure. Such are the way of things.
Anyway, the regular service advisories are below. These come to me from New York City Transit and are subject to change without notice. Please check the signs at your local station and listen to on-board announcements. Subway Weekender has the map.
From 11 p.m. Friday, February 4 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, uptown 1 trains skip 50th Street, 59th Street-Columbus Circle and 66th Street due to switch renewal north of Times Square. Customers traveling to these stations may take the 1 or 2 train to 72nd Street and transfer to a downtown 1. Customers at these stations traveling uptown may take a downtown 1 or 2 train to Times Square-42nd Street and transfer to an uptown 1 or 2.
During the weekend overnight hours from 11 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. (5 a.m. on Monday), 2 trains skip 50th Street, 59th Street-Columbus Circle and 66th Street due to switch renewal north of Times Square. Customers traveling to these stations may take the 1 or 2 train to 72nd Street and transfer to a downtown 1. Customers at these stations traveling uptown may take a downtown 1 or 2 train to Times Square-42nd Street and transfer to an uptown 1 or 2.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, February 5 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, Manhattan-bound 2 trains skip Eastern Parkway, Grand Army Plaza and Bergen Street due to track work at Grand Army Plaza. Customers traveling to these stations may take a Manhattan-bound 2 to Atlantic Avenue and transfer to a Brooklyn-bound 2.
From 6:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, February 5 and Sunday, February 6, Manhattan-bound 3 trains skip Eastern Parkway, Grand Army Plaza and Bergen Street due to track work at Grand Army Plaza.
During the weekend overnight hours, (12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m.), uptown 4 trains skip Canal, Spring, Bleecker Streets and Astor Place due to work on the Broadway/Lafayette-to-Bleecker Street transfer connection.
During the weekend overnight hours (12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m.), Manhattan-bound 4 trains skip Eastern Parkway, Grand Army Plaza and Bergen Street due to track work at Grand Army Plaza.
From 5:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., Saturday, February 5 and from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., Sunday, February 6, 5 trains run every 20 minutes between Dyre Avenue and Bowling Green due to work on the Broadway/Lafayette-to-Bleecker Street transfer connection.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday. February 5 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, uptown 6 trains skip Canal , Spring, Bleecker Streets and Astor Place due to work on the Broadway/Lafayette-to-Bleecker Street transfer connection.
From 11 p.m. Friday, February 4 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, D trains run local on the R line between DeKalb Avenue and 59th Street in Brooklyn due to track work (concrete pour) south of DeKalb Avenue.
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, February 5 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, E trains run on the F line between Roosevelt Avenue and West 4th Street due to work on the 5th Avenue Interlocking Signal System. The platforms at 5th Avenue-53rd Street, Lexington Avenue-53rd Street and 23rd Street-Ely Avenue are closed. Customers may take the R, G or shuttle bus. Free shuttle buses connect Court Square (G)/23rd Street-Ely Avenue (E), Queens Plaza (R) and the 21st Street-Queensbridge (F) stations.
From 11 p.m. Friday, February 4 to 5 a.m. Monday, February 7, N trains run local on the R line between DeKalb Avenue and 59th Street in Brooklyn due to track work (concrete pour) south of DeKalb Avenue.
8 comments
I don’t really understand why politicians are bitching about this on the N/Q. There’s been many weekends of track panel replacement and structural painting on the 7 in 2010 affecting service and yet no one complained about that.
Just like the recent work on the F/G lines in Park Slope as well as the 7 train work at Vernon Blvd, the politicians in Astoria are just trying to get their cake and eat it too by getting more than in other neighborhoods affected by track work.
I don’t see a need for a shuttle bus. Unlike the Brighton and Culver Line projects, the Astoria Line has bus service right underneath the train-the Q102 bus.
Also unlike the Brighton and Culver projects, this is an off-peak shutdown only. This sort of service change is absolutely standard.
I can’t imagine why anyone would even want to take the bus – backtracking or walking to a nearby station (every affected station is under half a mile from a station with Manhattan-bound service, either on the N/Q or on the R) would be faster.
Not to mention that most people will not even be affected by the construction. Whenever I ride the Astoria line, most people tend to get off at Astoria Blvd. and Ditmars Blvd. The stops that will be without service are low volume stations.
I wouldn’t say most: beyond Queensboro Plaza, ~58% of weekend riders use the bypassed stations. The second and third busiest stations on that segment also happen to be 30 Ave and Broadway, respectively.
Clearly no one who has commented has ever tried to take the bus (or the rare alternate shuttle bus) from 30th Avenue or Broadway when the N/Q isn’t running. On weekends without subway service the buses are so crowded that even if you wait an hour, you might not get on a bus. While it is true that some people can walk to the R, many people in the neighborhood are too far away to do so. And while it is possible for some to walk to Queensboro Plaza during daylight hours, it’s not very safe after dark. And as Judge said above, 30th Ave & Broadway are very high volume stations. Of course, this is not to say that Astoria has it any worse than other neighborhoods. I’ve lived in Park Slope too and it’s also miserable when they mess with the trains.
There are no shuttle buses. That’s the point. Service is running, but it’s running express in one direction. The service notices instruct people to go to Astoria Blvd. and backtrack. I was only pointing out the R as another option. Nobody has to walk any further than they do when service is normal.