When the MTA announced its FASTRACK program, their initial plans called for work on only the two IRT lines and the two IND lines. The BMT Broadway line was noticeably absent from the work blitz and overnight shutdown. I reached out to Transit this week to find out why the N, Q and R trains weren’t getting the same treatment and found out that the Broadway could be a part of FASTRACK in 2013 if and when the program is continued.
These year, though, those lines will escape the treatment simply because they’re in better shape than the rest of the subway system. “The amount of work along that corridor didn’t warrant shutting that segment at this point,” Transit spokesman Kevin Ortiz said to me earlier this week. Most of the stations that would be shut down along the Broadway line have recently been renovated, and the number of stations that come to mind that need the most work — mostly just City Hall — doesn’t warrant a total shutdown.
I didn’t have the chance to ask about the BMT Nassau St. line, but the Chambers St. and Bowery stations along the J/Z need far more work and attention than that provided by the FASTRACK shut down. Maybe one day, their times will come.
11 comments
Hope they will do nassau st line soon. Needs serious care
I noticed that they have started repainting City Hall station. Currently, half of the posts are a new crimson color, as opposed to the mustard yellow that has been there for since I can remember.
Saw MTA inspectors at Broad Street the other day documenting pealing painting. 5 of them to take an photo an iPhone. But at least attention is being paid.
I’d guess that you saw wasn’t a formal inspection but was rather a bunch of people who work down the block at 2 Broadway stopping by the station to check out a reported problem.
They should do FASTRACK on the 42nd steet shuttle. Maybe do some station cleaning because honestly they need to fix the gap there.
Simple end the “S” service early at 9:00pm and let the 7 take care of it.
This doesn’t quite make sense. Most FASTRACK work is on the tracks, not in stations. (If the goal were to spruce up stations, that could be done more efficiently by shutting one of the local tracks one weekend and the other local track the other weekend. There’s no need to shut all four tracks for station maintenance.)
The reality of the matter is the J portion of the City Hall (And the Bowery) stations, should be shut down for a year to get it in good working order (Similar to Smith & 9th St), and have the J terminate at Essex St. People can walk 3 blocks to Bowery from Essex/Delancy Street, if they need to get there. As for City Hall, they are already alternatives available, and once Bleeker St opens up for the uptown transfer to the F & M (Not to mention B & D), it becomes a trip that becomes even easier (Perhaps 5 minutes of inconvenience, unless you need to take the “J” for a trip past Myrtle Ave). I would bet that people would be willing to accept such a shutdown, in order to get the necessary work done (Anyone notice you have not heard constant screams about Smith & 9th except for the initial outburst?). Of course, this would make too much sense for the MTA.
Are you seriously suggesting terminating J trains at Essex for a year?
That would severely inconvenience J riders who work in the Financial District, who would have to transfer to the F or M, then to the 6, then to the 4/5. It would add a lot more than 5 minutes to their trips. I doubt the stairways on the island platform at Essex would be able to handle the flow in the morning rush, and I feel sorry for anybody who needs to get up them (against the peak flow) at that time.
Trackage doesn’t need to be closed for a year to accommodate station rehabs.
Has anybody noticed improvements on the 4/5/6 now that it’s been FASTRACK’ed? I haven’t, but I wouldn’t know what to look for.
There’s a short list at http://www.mta.info/news/stories/?story=559. Much of what was done is not visible to the public – the idea was to keep the system in working order, not to make it look pretty.
Here are some photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/m.....815172695/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/m.....829416173/
FASTRACK is just a way to introduce stealth budget cuts. By shutting the lines, they can move the repair work they’d do anyway to solid blocks of high-intensity work and save money on labor/overtime costs.
It’s just the inaugural round of the Cuomo Service Cuts and the Cuomo Fare Hikes taht will bedevil MTA commuters over the next several years.