Home MTA Economics Map: FASTRACK hits the West Side

Map: FASTRACK hits the West Side

by Benjamin Kabak

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, the MTA’s Orwellianly-named FASTRACK program continues next week as stations and tracks along the West Side IRT will be without service for four nights. Starting on Monday, the MTA will be terminating all 3 service at 10 p.m. while the 1 and 2 will run only between their northern terminals and 34th St./Penn Station. West Side redundancies, however, will ease commuters’ angst.

To ready for this service change, the MTA has published a map showing connections and the outages. I’ve included the Manhattan portion above and the Brooklyn portion below. To see the entire thing as a PDF, click here. The authority has also summarized the changes.

From 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. and from Monday night through Friday morning of next week, the following route changes go into effect.

  • The 1 will run between 34 St-Penn Station and 242 St
  • The 2 will run between 34 St-Penn Station and E 180 St; Rerouted via between E 180 St and Dyre Av
  • Free shuttle buses run to/from 3 stations at 148 St, 145 St, and 135 St.
  • The 4 will be extended to New Lots Av early, trains run local in Brooklyn
  • The 5 will run its regular route between Flatbush Av and E 180 St; Rerouted via the 2 between E 180 St and 241 St.
  • 42 Street Shuttle runs all night.

While those who rely on the East Side trains had fewer redundancies at least north of 14th Street, those who are traveling between Brooklyn and Manhattan on the 2 or 3 will be able to rely on the BMT and IND lines on the West Side or the 4 and 5 in Lower Manhattan. Straphangers who must transfer and wait for another train will find their commutes lengthened.

FASTRACK will continue along 6th Ave. at the end of the month and along 8th Ave. in mid-March. I have an inquiry in with the MTA as to why the Broadway line hasn’t been included in this program and will report back when I have an update.

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16 comments

The Cobalt Devil February 8, 2012 - 1:33 pm

I seriously hope they do some major powerwashing at Chambers St. That station hasn’t been cleaned in 30 years. I feel like I need a tetanus shot after waiting for a train at that station.

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matt February 8, 2012 - 4:52 pm

i totally agree….i haven’t frequented 23rd/28th street stations so i can’t give them a bill of health because i mainly ride the express – but when i transfer at chambers street…you know, plain and simple, it’s a trash pit. lol

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John February 8, 2012 - 2:02 pm

Just curious; why are the 2 and 5 swapping routes in the Bronx north of E 180 St? What does this have to do with FASTRACK?

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Alek February 8, 2012 - 3:29 pm

reason why: The 5 replaces the 2 so riders should not waste time transferring. Rememeber the 5 operates in the Bronx only late nights low ridership.

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Andrew February 9, 2012 - 11:26 pm

No, the reason is to simplify crew assignments. Notice that both terminals on the 5 are the normal late night terminals for the 2. Crews who normally work the 2 will instead work the 5, but out of their regular 2 terminals.

(Most 2 riders from the Bronx are probably not going south of 34th anyway.)

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winthrop street stanback February 21, 2012 - 8:41 am

Dude, it was nice to have a throwback 2 route for four dayz.

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Scott E February 8, 2012 - 2:05 pm

Just over a week ago, you wrote about the introduction of the “Late night service map”. I find it interesting that this nighttime map doesn’t incorporate those colors (not that I would expect such consistency).

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The Cobalt Devil February 8, 2012 - 2:51 pm

Probably because it’s a modified daytime map, which was used because some lines that don’t normally run during overnights (42nd St Shuttle, #5 train) are running during FASTRACK. This isn’t a true “overnight” map, but a special service map just for FASTRACK.

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Alek February 8, 2012 - 3:31 pm

The MTA should do FASTRACK on the Broadway line. They could reroute the (N) (R) over the Bridge line below Canal.

Simple like that

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John-2 February 8, 2012 - 7:25 pm

The MTA could do Broadway/Montague between Dekalb and Queensborough Plaza if they run the B as Brighton local overnight to replace the Q (running to 145th Street or short-turning at 59th Street), and just run a shuttle from Queensboro Plaza to Astoria and shuttles south from 36th Street in Brooklyn to take the place of the N and the R on the Sea Beach and Fourth Ave. locals (the alternative would be to keep the Q at night in place of the B, but run it via Sixth Ave. and the 53rd Street tunnel to Queens Plaza, so riders would have overnight one-seat access from midtown to the 7 at Court Square).

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Alek February 8, 2012 - 7:29 pm

For the B/D/F/M fastrack I guess this system will go like this what I know so far from the MTA planned work site

-D train runs local both directions via 8th ave A/C runs express both directions.

-F trains runs on the “E” line from 74th st- West 4th st

-E train runs local both directions between 71st – Queens Plaza

-Q train extended to 21st-Queensbridge (OLD SCHOOL Q TRAIN!)

– B/M service ends early. * M trains run all nights as shuttle.

That all I know so far.

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pea-jay February 8, 2012 - 10:45 pm

I’m confused. So the 4 and 5 will be running express in Manhattan in the overnight hours? Normally there is no 5 and the 4 and 6 go local the entire length.

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Matthias February 9, 2012 - 12:30 pm

Only the 5 will be express. The 4 will still run local.

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Kevin Li February 10, 2012 - 7:24 am

Has anyone noticed that some of the lines on the map are the wrong width? Is that supposed to mean something or just a mistake?

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t-bo February 10, 2012 - 10:56 am

Tried to leave the usual futile comment at the MTA NYC Transit site today and couldn’t even do that. Repeatedly rejected the message even though all fields were filled in. Essentially, there is no way to provide specific input to this awful bureaucracy.

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Benjamin Kabak February 10, 2012 - 10:58 am

About what? That’s a rather vague statement.

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