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AsidesMTA Absurdity

To leave the lights on or not

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 19, 2010

After hammering the MTA on safety issues related to the move to eliminate 450 station agent positions, amNew York reversed course today and is now questioning one of the MTA’s decisions designed to improve station safety. The authority, says Heather Haddon, is spending money on lighting abandoned station areas. Haddon and Julia Borovskaya found numerous examples of areas with 55-watt Sylvanina fluorescent tubes but without pedestrian access.

While the free daily calculates an energy bill at one station of over $20,000, the authority defends its lighting practices. Officials say that the lights are “necessary for security purposes, particularly for employees working in closed areas and emergency responders responding to calls. It also would be too expensive to separate the circuits in closed sections of the stations from the public ones, a transit spokeswoman said.” Safety, it seems, is not inexpensive.

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Transit Labor

Samuelsen ups the MTA labor war ante

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 19, 2010

Early last week, MTA CEO and Chairman Jay Walder took his attempts at getting the union to renegotiate work rules to the media and highlighted what he views as inefficiencies in the way union workers are scheduled. In response to this criticism and the MTA’s firings of hundreds of unionized workers, the TWU stationed an inflatable rat outside of Walder’s home. Today, TWU president John Samuelsen upped the ante in comments to the Daily News.

Slamming Walder while trying to protect his union members, Samuelsen went after Walder’s salary: “I bet you Walder has a Cadillac health plan and, not for nothing, he has the best severance package in the history of the public sector. I really can’t get past the hypocrisy of a rich guy coming into town, making $350,000 a year, with a wonderful severance package – he makes more money if he leaves than he does if he stays, almost, with a housing allowance – and he comes and talks about NYC Transit workers and antiquated work rules.”

Samuelsen — who eventually raises some good points about the way work rules are structured and his willingness to talk with MTA heads in private instead of through the media — isn’t doing himself any favors. Walder’s severance deal will kick in only if the State Senate pays him, and now they have an incentive not to. He won’t get a cent of that money if he isn’t booted out early. The salary, while seemingly high, pales in comparison with what a CEO at a private firm would make, and if New York wants to attract talent to head up the massive MTA, the authority will have to pay. We all want $350,000 a year, but to begrudge Walder those dollars is simply populism run amok.

With these statements, Samuelsen is doing exactly what he needs to do and should be doing: He is leading the union and fighting layoffs. At some point, though, these two sides have to get past their animosity and start talking to each other. Everyone stands to benefit from that discussion.

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Brooklyn

DOT set to study Red Hook trolley plans

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 19, 2010

Could Brooklyn streetcars, now employed in San Francisco, make a return? (Photo by flickr user phrenologist)

Brooklyn, once the borough of streetcars, may see a nostalgic return to its transit-rich past if House representative Nydia Velazquez has her way. After sitting on $300,000 Velazquez appropriated for the NYC DOT in 2005, the Department of Transportation has announced plans to use this money on a study examining light rail or streetcar service for the now-isolated Red Hook area. Even though DOT has yet to get the study off the ground, Velazquez has already requested a House transit bill the $10 million the project is estimated to cost, reports The Post.

Rich Calder has more:

The city Transportation Department expects to select a consultant within the next two months to study running the mile-long line from the Red Hook waterfront to Atlantic Avenue at the edge of Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is in walking distance to several subway and bus lines. The study could also look at extending the route another half-mile east, directly to the transit hub at Borough Hall…

Velazquez said the project is crucial for Red Hook, since the isolated neighborhood is facing brutal service cuts to its already-limited bus service — the B61, B77 and B71 lines. The neighborhood has no subway; its nearest train line — the F — is more than a mile away….

Nearly a decade ago, the BHRA proposed a trolley route running from existing tracks at the Van Brunt Street waterfront, north up Richards Street and then Columbia Street, before hitting the park at Atlantic Avenue and then heading east to Borough Hall. Light-rail lines are much cheaper and quicker to build than subway lines and use far less energy. They run on existing streets, normally without the need to eliminate parking spots

For reasons that remain opaque, New York City has been resistant to the idea of bringing back a street-based system of transit that can outpace the sluggish bus system. A plan to incorporate light rail along 42nd St. has earned headlines as a novelty act, but few within the transit community and without take this idea seriously. Why not, I ask. After all, light rail is cheaper and more efficient than subway construction is today.

The Brooklyn waterfront and Red Hook, in particular, are ideal grounds for a light rail trial, but the DOT and MTA have to get it right. Most vital, as I discussed last year, are the connections between any new surface transit system and the current public transportation infrastructure. According to The Post, one route under consideration would rune from Red Hook to Atlantic Ave. along the waterfront with a terminal that is within “walking distance” from “several subway and bus lines.” The edge of the Brooklyn Bridge Park is a significant walk from the subway, and that’s simply not good enough.

Rather, the streetcars should take riders directly to the subway system. Unless DOT wants to construct a very thorough light rail system that services central business areas and provides interborough connections, it must connect Red Hook to either the F/G stop at Smith and 9th Sts. or Borough Hall (or both). Intermodal connections are key.

Of course, streetcars and light rail come with a downside. Unless the city is willing to build a San Francisco-Embarcadero style system with dedicated rights of way, streetcars are beholden to surface traffic ebb and flow. They are, in effect, buses on rails. They can’t navigate around car accidents or other stalled streetcars. They provide access but not speed or flexibility.

With subway construction in New York City prohibitively expensive these days, the city must look to other options in an effort to increase its transportation network. With this six-month study, something is finally getting a look it deserves. I’m not going to start waiting around for streetcars to return to Brooklyn quite yet though.

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AsidesMTA Politics

A mayor, not so aware, reveals his true transit stripes

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 18, 2010

Jay Walder made headlines last week when he announced an MTA thought experiment. The authority, said the CEO and Chairman, may consider shutting large segments of train lines from Friday night until Monday morning to better expedite the weekend repairs. With larger chunks of routes closed for shorter periods of time, the MTA can be more productive with its capital improvements.

Into this fray went the supposedly pro-transit Mayor Michael Bloomberg. When reached for a comment, the third-term mayor who famously commutes via subway had the following to say to the Wall Street Journal: “I can think of only once in the last eight and a third years where we held for more than a minute or two,” Mr. Bloomberg said. “I never find any service interruptions.”

Bloomberg ran an appealing campaign for his third mayoral term by highlighting a 33-point plan to reform mass transit, but it’s clear that the mayor had no intentions to follow through. This statement simply highlights his mentality. Bloomberg has his drivers take him from his house to the subway, and he uses the 6 train for show during the work week. I’d love to know when the mayor last took a train ride on the weekend that involved service disruptions and diversions. As the MTA struggles along, we certainly shouldn’t expect the mayor to do it a thing about it. After all, the trains run on time for him.

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AsidesLIRRService Cuts

LIRR service cuts now in place

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 18, 2010

With little fanfare, the MTA implemented the first of this spring’s service cuts. Yesterday morning, new timetables for the Long Island Rail Road went into effect, and although the cuts are seemingly insubstantial, the commuter rail line just became a little less convenient for its riders. Generally, the cuts consist of the elimination of some overnight trains and peak trips, and the LIRR said that most riders will see waits increase by 10 minutes or less. Still, with these cuts into place, people will find it more burdensome to commute via rail. Trains will be more crowded and now run less frequently. If the purpose of mass transit is to provide convenient and cost-effective replacements for auto trips, cuts always run counter to that goal.

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Public Transit Policy

A funding failure on a national level

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 18, 2010

A bus stop warns of impending service cuts. Photo by Benjamin Kabak

Throughout the country, signs such as the ones currently adorning New York City’s bus stops are popping up all over. While infrastructure investment may be up, transit authorities can’t meet their bottom line, and to avoid fiscal ruin, those who run transit systems are cutting service and employees. As transit use hits record highs for the auto era, a depressing map from Transportation For America shows just how widespread the service cuts are.

Why transportation authorities are in the red cuts to the heart of mass transit as a public good. To ensure relatively equal access to all, fares for buses, subways and light rail lines must be kept artificially low. While the demographics of New York City’s transit users do not line up well with the rest of the nation’s, throughout the country, people who are less well off are generally transit riders, and to keep the economy moving, transit fares cannot be prohibitively expenses. In an ideal world, the state would subsidize the difference between revenue and a $0 balance sheet.

But over the last few decades, transit authorities have come face-to-face with financial difficulties. Some of it can be blamed on a conservative government movement hesitant to invest in public goods. Some of it can be blamed on bad debt funding practices; some on rising pension obligations and management salary totals; and some on unfunded federal mandates. The bottom line is that, no matter the cost, transit authorities are broke, and the American people are suffering for it.

A recent editorial by Dan Grabauskas, a former GM at Boston’s MBTA, and Paul Regan, current executive director of the MBTA Advisory Board bring this national problem to light. In Boston, the MBTA faces a “$230 million structural deficit and $543 million in unfunded safety-critical projects.” In other words, despite the city’s willingness to spend billions on the Big Dig, it can’t find the money to ensure the T can run properly, efficiently and safely.

The two summarize the national crisis:

According to a 2010 survey by the American Public Transportation Association, 84 percent of all transit agencies have cut service or raised fares in the last year, or plan to do so in the near future. New York City faces a $800 million shortfall, and has implemented a plan to delay maintenance, and cut entire subway lines and bus routes; Chicago, facing a $300 million shortfall, has significantly reduced service on dozens of bus routes, and rail lines; Philadelphia has announced a 6 percent fare increase to help close a $110 million operating deficit; and Washington has a $189 million operating deficit for next year, with plans to balance it by using capital funds to pay for operating costs (thus deferring maintenance), as well as reducing some bus and rail service.

These “legacy’’ transit systems are starved by budgets in which escalating and intractable fixed costs outpace combined fare revenues and government subsidies. They are pressured by safety and reliability concerns resulting from deferred maintenance, and they face continuing calls for expansion without regard for how to pay to build, operate, or maintain the extensions, let alone the existing system.

Overall, the two urge transit authorities to invest in repairs and system maintenance — the so-called State of Good Repair — before eying ambitious expansion projects. One, though, should not come at the expense of another. The country’s transit networks must expand to meet environmental demands and the needs of growing urban population centers.

The two also urge public/private partnerships to encourage creative solutions to maintenance and construction challenges, and they call for an expansion of the funding available for public transit systems under the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act. It might be too late for New York to avoid the upcoming service cuts, but as a nation’s transit systems suffer, it’s time for the federal government to act. Token stimulus dollars that can be used for operating expenses won’t cut it, but a true commitment to mass transit will.

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AsidesMTA Economics

MTA takes on experimental theater company over back rent

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 17, 2010

As the MTA looks to maximize its revenue streams, the company’s myriad real estate holdings have come under the microscope. The 270 Jay St. building remains controversial, and the reduced payment for the Vanderbilt Yards have left many raising an eyebrow. Another property dispute — this one involving less money — made some headlines this morning. The authority has begun eviction procedures against 3-Legged Dog, an experimental theater and media troupe currently renting space from the MTA at 80 Greenwich St. The group, which signed a 20-year lease in 2002 after its home at 30 West Broadway was destroyed on Sept. 11, owes the MTA $21,666.67 a month and had fallen behind in its rent payments by $306,000.

The eviction notice did not arrive without controversy. With the company raising a stink, two politicians urged the MTA to reconsider. Supposedly, part of 3-Legged Dog’s debt stems from their need to pay for asbestos abatement on the MTA-owned building. The authority, however, says the troupe is overstating the cost of this work. “I don’t know how anyone can justify letting this tenant rack up hundreds of thousands of dollars in back rent at a time when state cuts and deteriorating tax revenues have forced the MTA to lay off station agents and cut service,” spokesman Jeremy Soffin said to the Wall Street Journal. This move is indeed a prime example of Jay Walder’s efforts to make every dollar count.

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AsidesMTA Absurdity

Look before you don’t leap

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 17, 2010

It never makes sense to jump into the tracks. It doesn’t make sense to retrieve an iPod or a wallet, keys or a water bottle. Yet, over the last few months, a handful of straphangers have done just that, often with tragic results. Just last Friday, in fact, an N train killed a man who jumped into the track bed in Astoria to help his companion retrieve a jacket. Over the course of a year, nearly 90 are struck by trains, and most of those accidents occur when people value their material items over their lives.

Today, in The Times, Michael Grynbaum and Rebecca White explore track-jumpers. Some people laugh off the danger as the cost of living. “I can either pay $300 for a new Blackberry, or I can jump down on the track,” Sean Frawley told the paper. Others — and those at New York City Transit — underscore the foolishness of jumping onto tracks that are deeper than they appear. “It’s just not worth taking the risk,” Transit spokesman Paul Fleuranges. “In one instant the coast looks clear, and you think you can hop down, retrieve your item and hop back up. In reality, it’s not that simple.”

The lesson, of course, is an obvious one: It just isn’t worth it. I’d rather see my iPod or jacket run over by a train than my leg or entire body. But if Darwin is going to rule the day, the subway train tracks are a great place to find him.

Addendum: New York City Transit has covered this topic in its TransitTrax podcast series. The transcript of their pro-safety piece is available here, and you can grab the audio right here. Transit officials say workers respond to approximately 12-15 calls per day from straphangers who have dropped their iPods or wallets on the tracks.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

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MTA Technology

The MTA’s camera problems as technological metaphor

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 17, 2010

Since late March, when three suspects in an on-board stabbing were not caught on tape because the cameras at Christopher St. aren’t working properly, the MTA’s nascent surveillance system has come under fire. The authority, critics say, has spent tens of millions of dollars on a system that doesn’t work and is three years behind schedule. With a mixture of terrorist threats, station agent dismissals and booth closures fresh on the minds of New Yorkers, the failed camera program has become a very convenient scapegoat for those who worry about the safety of the city’s straphangers.

There is, of course, one small problem: The camera system is a metaphor for the MTA’s technological woes and not a comprehensive solution to securing a porous system. When fully working, camera recordings may improve police response by providing detectives with video evidence of a crime, and an efficient camera system may act as a minor deterrent. But making the system safer requires eyes and officers.

As I’ve noted in the past, the limitations of a camera system are clear. Viewing crimes after they happen aids officers in the hunt for the perpetrators, but only a fictional counter-terrorism unit on FOX’s 24 has the ability to spy on New York City in real time. As former NYPD commissioner Howard Safir said a few weeks ago, “There are so many entrances, so many stations, so many people. It’s virtually impossible to guarantee that [the subway system] won’t be vulnerable.”

Yet, there is a lesson to learn from the camera saga, and Pete Donohue of the Daily News delves into the MTA’s technological failures today. It a nutshell, the MTA’s current problem is one of cost. As Donohue relates, an original $15-million plan to install 910 cameras at 32 stations and record the goings-on has taken over four years to get off the ground, and the price tag is now a cool $21.3 million or $23,000 per camera. He continues:

The problems with the MTA’s surveillance cameras, watchdogs say, stretch from top to bottom. Different types of camera equipment have been installed by different contractors under the oversight of different MTA units. Some were hooked up as part of station rehabilitations while others fell under anti-terror programs, with different arms of the MTA overseeing them…

The $23,000 camera debacle came about, critics say, because the agency wanted to raise the bar on its camera system – but raised it too high. While a previous project to install 16 cameras in 60 stations stored recordings on site, NYC Transit wanted contractor TAP Electrical to store all recordings from the 910 cameras – about 28 per station – on a network created by a new company.

The agency believed the new network would be able to handle the larger amount of data and enable information to be transmitted digitally, NYC Transit spokesman Paul Fleuranges said. Only it didn’t work out. There were technical glitches, and attempts by the start-up company to fix the software failed, Fleuranges said. Then the start-up went belly up.

This is a similar story to the one we know about the MTA’s cellular service pilot as well. The agency picked a start-up formed for the sole purpose of wiring the subways and one with little experience under its belt or a track record to its name. Similar to this camera plan, the cell service pilot went nowhere fast, and the MTA found itself with a bill and no progress as other subway systems throughout the world increased their underground wireless connectivity.

With Jay Walder at the helm, the authority has started to focus more on technological integration and transit in New York City, but Walder also has to carry the burden of cleaning up previous mistakes. Eventually, this summer, the cameras will be plugged into a recording system, but the project will finish three years later than planned. This is technological innovation at its worst, and Walder could create a legacy for himself if he can figure out how to improve the MTA’s relationship with the 21st century.

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Service Advisories

Weekend service changes impact Yankee travel

by Benjamin Kabak
written by Benjamin Kabak on May 15, 2010

As you browse the site this weekend, make sure to check out my tour inside the Second Ave. Subway launch box. There’s a corresponding photo set and a brief video as well.

The service advisories follow. These come to me via New York City Transit and are subject to change without notice. Listen to on-board announcements and check signs in your local station. Check Subway Weekender for the map, and don’t fret over the news that the MTA may consider shuttering larger segments of routes to make better use of weekend service changes. That future seems unlikely.

Just a note for those of you who, like me, are heading up to Yankee Stadium this weekend. Both the 4 and D trains have service changes that will impact how long it takes to get to the Bronx. The two trains are running local for parts of their routes in Manhattan, and there is no 4 service between Brooklyn and Manhattan. Plan accordingly.


Fulton Street Transit Center
From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17:

  • A trains bypass Broadway-Nassau St. in both directions.
  • There is no C train service this weekend.
  • There are no transfers between the A and 2/3 trains at Broadway-Nassau St/Fulton Street.
  • In Manhattan, free transfers are available between 2/3 trains at Fulton Street and A trains at Chambers Street. Customers must exit and re-enter the subway system when making this connection.


From 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, there are no 2 trains between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse due to track panel installation south of Freeman Street and rail work at 149th Street-3rd Avenue. Free shuttle buses provide alternate service.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, 3 service runs to/from New Lots Avenue due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, there are no 4 trains between Utica Avenue and Brooklyn Bridge due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center. For Utica, Franklin and Atlantic Avenues, customers should take the 3. For Nevins Street, Borough Hall, Bowling Green, Wall Street, Fulton Street and Brooklyn Bridge, customers should take the special J shuttle.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, 4 trains run local between 125th Street and Brooklyn Bridge due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center.


From 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, there are no 5 trains between East 180th Street and Bowling Green due to track panel installation south of Freeman Street and rail work at 149th Street-3rd Avenue. Free shuttle buses, 4 and the special J shuttle trains provide alternate service. To travel between East 180th Street and 149th Street-Grand Concourse, customers should take the shuttle bus. To travel between 149th Street-Grand concourse and Brooklyn Bridge, customers should take the 4. For Fulton Street, customers should take the special J shuttle to Fulton Street. For Wall Street and Bowling Green, customers should take the special J shuttle to Broad Street.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, Pelham Bay Park-bound 6 trains run express from Hunts Point Avenue to Pelham Bay Park due to track panel installation. Note: At Parkchester, train doors open onto the Manhattan-bound platform.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, the last stop for some Bronx-bound 6 trains is 3rd Avenue-138th Street due to station rehabilitation and structural repair at Whitlock Avenue, Morrison-Sound View Aves., and Parkchester.


From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 15, Main Street-bound 7 trains skip 82nd, 90th, 103rd, and 111th Streets due to rail repairs.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, downtown A trains run local from 168th Street to 145th Street due to Jay Street station rehabilitation, construction of the underground connector at Lawrence Street station and the Culver Viaduct rehabilitation.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, downtown A trains run express from 59th Street to Canal Street due to tile cleaning and platform repairs.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, 207th Street-bound A trains run on the F line from Jay Street to West 4th Street, then return to the A line running local to 59th Street due to Chambers Street Signal Modernization Project.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, 207th Street-bound A trains skip 135th, 155th, and 163rd Streets due to continuous welded rail installation and clean up.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, A trains run local between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts and Euclid Avenue due to Chambers Street Signal Modernization Project.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, A trains skip Broadway-Nassau St. in both directions due to work on the Fulton Street Transit Center.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, there is no C train service due to the Chambers Street Signal Modernization Project. Customers should take the A or D instead. Note: D trains run local between 145th Street and 59th Street. A trains run local with exceptions.


From 11 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 6 a.m. Saturday, May 15, from 11 p.m. Saturday, May 15 to 7 a.m. Sunday, May 16, and from 11 p.m. Sunday, May 16 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, Manhattan-bound D trains skip 174th-175th Sts. and 170th Street due to a track chip out north of 170th Street.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, D trains run local between 145th Street and 59th Street due to the Chambers Street Signal Modernization Project.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, D trains stop at DeKalb Avenue and run local between Pacific Street and 36th Street due to switch renewal north of 9th Avenue.


From 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, free shuttle buses replace E trains between Jamaica Center and Kew Gardens-Union Turnpike due to switch renewal north of Sutphin-Archer. Note: E trains are rerouted on the F line between Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Jamaica-179th Street.


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, Jamaica-bound E trains run express from Roosevelt Avenue to Forest Hills-71st Avenue due to the substation rehabilitation north of Roosevelt Avenue.


From 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, free shuttle buses replace F trains between Jay Street and Church Street due to Jay Street station rehabilitation and construction of underground connector at Lawrence Street station and the Culver Viaduct rehabilitation. Note: There is no G service between Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts. and Church Avenue.


From 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, there are no G trains between:

  • Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Bedford-Nostrand Avenues
  • Hoyt-Schermerhorn Sts and Church Avenue

This is due to a track chip out north of Metropolitan Avenue and work on the Culver Viaduct. Free shuttle buses and E R trains provide alternate service. For service between Forest Hills-71st Avenue and Queens Plaza, customers should take the R during the daytime hours, and the E during the late night hours. – Another five-stop weekend for the G train.


Free shuttle buses run in two sections:

  • Between Queens Plaza and Bedford-Nostrand Avenue and
  • Between Jay Street and Church Avenue


From 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 15 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, special J shuttle trains run between Essex Street and the Prospect Park Q station due to Fulton Street Transit Center.


From 6:30 a.m. to 12 midnight, Saturday, May 15 and Sunday, May 16, Forest Hills-bound R trains run express from Roosevelt Avenue to Forest Hills-71st Street due to the substation rehabilitation north of Roosevelt Avenue.


From 10:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 17, free shuttle buses replace Rockaway Park Shuttle S trains between Rockaway Park and Beach 67th Street due to station rehabilitation work at Beach 98th Street.

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